Chapter Thirty-One

Privileged Knowledge

Eben led Stephen up to the balcony of the Three Broomsticks after they were done shopping. Stephen couldn't help but smile as he looked over the side, glad to be the only student that had such an uncrowded space when the others were tugging at tables and duplicating chairs to make room for everyone.

"I still can't believe you spent that much on Griselda," Eben said once they got settled. "Just because she has a list larger than everyone else doesn't mean you have to fill it. Don't you think she has enough special privileges already?"

"Yes, and typically I find that really irritating," Stephen admitted, Eben nodding in agreement. "But she's really put out about not being able to talk in our heads right now... furious, in fact. She keeps getting into more and more trouble with the prefects and the professors because she's so angry. The ghosts are on strike and won't have anything to do with Slytherin house right now... except for Peeves, who has gone out of his way to set up corridor traps for her. Unfortunately, she senses when he's about to pull something, so it's typically one of her housemates that falls into his traps. Now, they don't want anything to do with her either. She's not use to it... being alone. She's not even used to thinking alone, so I filled her list because she's having a rough time of it."

"That's not a good enough reason," Eben said sternly. Stephen stared at him in surprise. "I'd rather Zelda learn from this experience, and she needs a detox from all of the pampering she normally gets. Being talented at something is no reason to spoil a child."

"Did you actually just criticize our father?" Stephen asked in a stunned whisper.

"He won't hear us, so don't worry about it," Eben said unconcernedly. "You can say what you think when you're with me."

"Well, what I think is that marrying a Willowby completely went to your head. You're mad to say anything bad about our father, even if you are out of the house now," Stephen said.

"Why? What are you afraid will happen if he hears us?" Eben asked fixedly.

"Something bad, that's all I know. I've been at the receiving end of one of Zelda's tantrums when we don't fall in line fast enough to suit her. I expect that father would be even worse if any of us crossed him. It's insanity," Stephen said.

"It is insanity. It's insanity that any of us would be that terrified about how might react," Eben replied quietly.

"I'm not terrified, but I'm also not stupid," Stephen retorted, shaking his head at his brother. "You're not immune just because he's always had trouble reading you, you know."

"I know," Eben assured him. "I've never been under the presumption that I'm immune, it's just that I'm no longer preoccupied with how I'm going to keep myself alive on a day to day basis. The perspective changes when you have others in your life your care about more than you care about yourself."

"Is that some sort of 'I'm an Auror and I'll die to protect the common good' dribble?" Stephen asked flatly.

"I guess that would seem a bit much from your point of view," Eben realized, sipping his drink thoughtfully. "You've never had the opportunity to think about anyone but yourself, have you?"

"Except for Zelda," Stephen said. Eben sighed with exasperation.

"You only think of Zelda because you need to keep her happy to survive. Do you care about her?" Eben asked him.

"Well, she is my sister..."

"Do you care about her?" Eben interrupted insistently. "Do you really care about anyone?"

"I care about me," Stephen snapped. "And I don't see what's wrong with that. Shouldn't everyone care about themselves? Or you want us all to be lemmings?"

"Actually, I want you to be the opposite of a lemming. If Zelda ordered you to do something dangerous, would you do it? What are you going to do when her orders are more frightening than she is?" Eben asked.

"Nothing is more frightening than she is, because if I refused doing something dangerous for her, she'd force me to do it anyway," Stephen snapped at him. "Can we please talk about something else? This conversation is going no where. Yes, I plan to keep her placated, and nothing is going to change that situation so I don't see much of a point talking about it."

"She can't make you do anything right now, you know," Eben reassured him. "She can't hear your thoughts any more than she can hear mine at the moment."

"She can still read off of other people and use them to hear what we say," Stephen pointed out.

"Only when she's close," Eben said. "If you're careful about the people you're around, that won't be a problem. Do you have any friends?"

"Of course I don't. The only one stupid enough to hang around us is Ian Bulstrode, and he's Broc's friend, not mine," Stephen explained. "I have enough to deal with without worrying about friends."

"So in other words, you do care," Eben concluded. Stephen blinked at him. "You care enough not to have friends."

"That's the stupidest idea I've heard yet. Don't put words in my mouth! I have enough people doing that for me without you adding to it," Stephen protested. Eben didn't have to think about it for too long.

"You're right. I'm sorry," Eben said. "I'll make it up to you by taking you to Toby's. I was thinking about getting you one of those card games of his. Would you like one?"

"I don't see why I'd need my own. Zelda already has one. So does Bonnibel. Why would I want one?" Douglas asked.

"Because it plays a great solitaire game and you don't have any friends," Eben reasoned, finishing his tea. Stephen shrugged.

"Sure, okay," Stephen said. "As long as I'm not paying for it."

"Don't worry, Stephen. I've got you covered," Eben replied, putting coins on the table and getting up. Stephen followed behind, more than a little glad that the interrogation was over as they worked their way over to the Tinker Shop.

By the time they got there, only a handful of students remained as they grabbed their last purchases before going to the bus.

"Oh, good afternoon, Eben! Good afternoon, Stephen!" Toby said.

"I guess I can't deny it this time. I am going by Stephen now," Stephen said with a grin.

"We're just looking for a copy of Trial and Error, Mr. Toby," Eben explained.

"Oh, yes... there's still a stack in that corner there. And what about you, Stephen?"

"Um... maybe just some of the cocoa," Stephen said, taking out his change for one of the smaller bags.

"A very good choice! And that bag is a bit bigger than it looks. Plenty to share with a friend!" Toby assured him.

"Thanks," Stephen said flatly. But if Toby picked up his lack of enthusiasm he pretended not to notice, wrapping the game for Eben.

"Thank you, and take care of yourselves! It's likely to get much colder out there. Seek warmth wherever you can, with bright fireplaces and candles to light up dark nights ahead!" Toby suggested. "That goes double for you, Stephen."

"Thanks," Stephen said again.

"We will, thank you," Eben said more sincerely, the two of them walking out of the shop and out into the street.

"So are we done then?" Stephen asked, gazing at Eben. But then he frowned, because Eben's face seemed very serious as it gazed into the distance. "Is something wrong?"

"Nothing," Eben said, pulling himself out of it before taking his brother's hand. "But we probably should take his advice and find somewhere bright and warm while we can."

"Sure," Stephen shrugged. "But it sounded like a normal goodbye, get out of my store to me."

"It doesn't mean it wasn't good advice," Eben told him. "Off we go!" he warned, Apparating them to the Hogwarts gates. He then handed Stephen a large bag, sending him inside. "See you next shopping trip! Maybe we'll do some Christmas shopping then!"

"If so, bring my allowance with you," Stephen suggested.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you're covered," Eben said, waving as Stephen went inside.

He took the passages since it was the fastest way to Slytherin, and stepped into Conspiracies to look for his siblings. But the only sibling in room was Zelda; playing a board game at a table by herself despite the fact that most of her classmates were also hanging around, some working on homework while others played cards and other games near the fire where it was warmer.

"I'm back! I have everything on your list, Zelda, and an extra bag of candy I threw in there to cheer you up," Stephen told her.

"Really? Then how come that other bag is bigger?" Zelda wanted to know after a quick glance, rolling her dice.

"Oh, that's just a copy of that Trial and Error game that Eben bought me," Stephen explained.

"I already have that. I don't see why we'd need another one in the house," Zelda said with exasperation, finally accepting her bag.

"Eben says it's really good for solitaire," Stephen explained.

"The problem with solitaire is that you can't really ever win. Come play me, Stephen," Zelda insisted, resetting the game.

"I really should deliver these to the others. I haven't even been over to Hufflepuff yet," Stephen said, but sat down and rolled the dice anyway. Do you know where everyone is?"

"They all went to the library to work on that stupid report," Zelda said.

"Really? I don't know how far they can get without me. The Headmaster gave the permission for the Research Library to me, since I didn't get in trouble," Stephen said.

"It's a good thing you didn't, or Antonio would be in there. Can you imagine how incompetent he would be at that job?"

"Pretty incompetent," Stephen said, having no trouble agreeing with that one.

"It is so frustrating not knowing how things are going, or even what they've discovered so far!" Zelda said, viciously rolling the dice.

"As soon as we're done with the game, I'll go find out for you," Stephen offered.

"Fine. You can be my little spy," Zelda decided, glancing up. "From now on, your job is to tell me every little detail about the research... and about what you find in the Research Library that might be of some interest to me."

"Like what?" Stephen asked, letting the dice fall out of his hands.

"How would I know if I don't know what's in there? You know me well enough to figure it out," Zelda said.

"Yes, I guess you're right. Alright, Zelda, I'll keep you informed," Stephen agreed.

"I'm sure you will," Zelda decided, rolling the dice again.

It took more time than either of them preferred for Zelda to beat him at the game, but finally it was over and Stephen had permission to make his way over to the library.

It wasn't difficult to find his siblings, since they had taken one of the larger tables by one of the heating stoves. It was a central location, making it easy for them to grab a book from any corner of the library. As Stephen passed out the bags, Gloria, who was working her library shift, reminded them to keep their candy stashed until they were back to their rooms.

"Do you know if I'm allowed in the Research Library yet?" Stephen asked before she could leave.

"I don't know, but Librarian Boulderdash is in the Owl Room, so I'll go find out," Gloria promised, and went in that direction.

"We have more than enough research to work with for the moment, but I do have a booklist for you," Bonnibel told him, pulling out a piece of paper. "We've been going through Quintin's article about the Founders and their apprentices, and used the references to pull out every book about O'Laren we can find."

"Really? That won't make Zelda happy," Stephen noted.

"It's not her project. She ruined her chances with that Ravenclaw stunt," Bonnibel pointed out unconcernedly. "I'm in charge, so we're going to do it my way. Here is the list of books and scrolls we can't find. I'm quite sure they're all back there. Once we've gleaned all we can out of it, we'll be done for the day and will make a plan for tomorrow."

"I have a football game tomorrow... the last one before spring, remember? We're playing Dusthorn," Stephen said.

"Ugh. Events are sooo inconvenient," Bonnibel said, and Moira and Broc both nodded in agreement. "I am so glad I don't have to deal with those any longer."

"At least that means that Dusthorn isn't likely to be in here tomorrow afternoon," Broc pointed out.

"No, I suppose they won't," Bonnibel agreed with a smile.

There was a growling noise and Stephen turned to see that Gloria had returned with Boulderdash.

"Miss Brittle informs me that you're ready to start your research, Mr. Maxen. Or are you? Where is your notebook?" he asked suspiciously, squinting at him.

"Here's the list," Bonnibel said, holding it out for him.

Stephen quickly took it and grabbed the notebook and Never-dry Quill that Broc had slid out to him.

"Ready!" he said.

"Hm," Boulderdash said skeptically and began walking to the back. When Stephen risked a grin, Bonnibel shooed him to follow and Stephen hurriedly caught up.

"There are some very strict rules when it comes to using the Research Library, Mr. Maxen. If you do not follow them, you will be removed and you will not be invited to use the library again. Your team will be forced to do without that resource. Do you understand?" Boulderdash asked, glancing up at the boy.

"Yeah," Stephen said, and watched as he opened the door.

He had peered in often enough when that door was open, only to see nothing but several rows of shelves and a pedestal draped with a heavy cloth, so it didn't come as a surprise it was the first thing he noticed, focusing in curiously on the pedestal.

"That is a part of school security," Boulderdash informed him the moment his eyes focused on it. "Touching it will set off an alarm, and you'll have a very quick and permanent trip out of here... and into the Headmaster's office," he added.

"Are there any more threats coming? Because if so, I'd rather just get them out of the way now," Stephen informed him curtly. Boulderdash sneered.

"In that case, the last warning is that you can use any references in the room, but you may not move any of them from this room," Boulderdash said. "I know you are old enough to understand how to handle ancient tomes properly, but if you come across any that you are particularly hesitant in handling, feel free to ask me for assistance, or any professors you may encounter. If you do not need help, then don't pester them, since they have their own work to do."

"I understand," Stephen said.

Boulderdash gestured for him to follow over to series of square shelves with the names of the staff on each one, and most of them had books inside of them. The only ones different were the ones featuring the names of Quintin Snape and Jeremy Miller... that was when he noticed his own name right underneath it.

"This is where you may put books you are researching if you are not through with them and need to refer to them later," he explained.

"Thank you... but may I ask one more question? The books sitting in these shelves... can I use them too? Jeremy's team is researching the same topic, so there are times I'll need the same book as they do," Stephen said.

"That is precisely why this Research Library was built in the first place," Boulderdash informed him. "We had too many professors at this school needing the same rare tomes and had trouble securing the rights to use them, so this area was made to end the squabbling. You may use any resources in here, including those in the cubbies, but do yourself a favor and make certain all of the bookmarks stay in place so that the student or professor you are borrowing them from doesn't have to constantly go looking for their place. Fighting is also something that would undoubtedly make you lose your privileges,"

"Okay, okay, I get it," Stephen said.

"Good. Happy researching," the Librarian said, "Good afternoon, Professor Ravenclaw," he added. Stephen whipped his head around in fear. At first he didn't see anything, until the book at the end of the table floated up and neatly put itself back on Ravenclaw's shelf.

"Don't think I don't have may eye on you, Stephen Maxen. I'll be checking back often," he heard Icarus Ravenclaw say in a cool voice.

"Check all you like! I'm just here to do research," Stephen said defensively, pulling out a chair and putting down his notebook and list.

It wasn't lost on him that Ravenclaw could check on him any moment he liked without Stephen noticing that he was there. It was also not lost on him that Jeremy and Quintin's shelves had quite a number of books about Bedivere O'Lauren on their shelves already. Were they all on the list that Bonnibel gave him? Or had they found some new ones recently that would be useful?

Stephen looked at the list. Then he looked at Jeremy's shelf, noting that one of them was on there.

"After all, Librarian Boulderdash said I could share books as long as I don't move anyone's bookmarks," he said out loud before plucking that book on his list plus a couple more out of Jeremy's shelf. Then he sat down and wasted no time looking over the passages he had bookmarked. Smiling at just how much that was going to speed things up, Stephen began making writing them down.