CHAPTER 28
14 February 1993 - Lord's Suite - Kolumbiko Manor, 6:23AM
With a vicious snarl Sameer terminated the Floo connection, just barely resisting the urge to hurl his tea set into the nearby wall. He ran a frustrated hand over his face, expression tight with worry and exhaustion.
It'd been well over a month since his precious Eurus had been Petrified along with her Housemates, and there was no Mandrake to be found anywhere. Not on the Kolumbikos' many estates, none on the open market, even his 'special contacts' hadn't been able to find any on the wizarding black market. Sameer sneered in recollection at how many of his galleons Mundungus-bloody-Fletcher had made off with and delivered absolutely no results.
Eurus' petrification had shaken their family terribly. Sera had been inconsolable, spending almost an entire week in the Hospital Wing oscillating between fretting over her daughter and hovering over Madam Pomfrey (much to the Matron's irritation). She (along with Cyra) had made several discreet inquiries to Al Ghayb and their own network of personal contacts. Just like Sameer, they'd discovered there was no Mandrake solution to be had anywhere. Haseeb had been absolutely furious and made his fury known very clearly to Albus Dumbledore in no uncertain terms, thoroughly (and very loudly) berating the man for his "absolutely and consistently appalling inability to properly run a bloody school!" The portrait of Phineas Nigellus Black - while thoroughly amused at Albus' verbal thrashing - had spent close to half an hour trying to clear his ringing ears.
He wasn't the only one faced with a Kolumbiko's ire; upon discovery of her baby sister's condition Olivia Kolumbiko had discreetly sent Harry Potter a Howler which, thankfully, had been delivered to him in his room and not the Great Hall. Instead of angry screaming the Howler had promised - in Olivia's low and deadly voice - that if Harry didn't figure out what the bloody hell had caused her baby sister to end up Petrified, she would thoroughly emasculate him. A shuddering and terrified Harry had been somewhat relieved that the older witch had graduated and couldn't have such easy access to him to deliver on her promise.
With a tired sigh Lord Kolumbiko sat down in his chair and leaned forward on his desk, hands steepled in deep thought. He knew he was partly to blame for this entire debacle; he knew the Secret regarding the Heir of Slytherin and the Chamber of Secrets, not hesitating to agree when Myrtle-Gate had occurred. It had seemed like a foolproof idea at the time, the ultimate means to ensure their involvement in Myrtle's death (and subsequent coverup) remained hidden. Sameer knew without a doubt that Dumbledore would have continued to press the matter and ensured they were all expelled, if not tossed arse-over-teakettle into Azkaban, Third Years be damned. 'At this rate, we might still end up in Azkaban.' He snorted contemptuously.
Leaning back in his chair, Sameer allowed his eyes to wander across the various items on his desk until they landed on a small animated portrait. It was of him, Tom, Nobby, Erasmus, Cassie, Eleos Shafiq, Tassos Burke, and Ursula Bulstrode, all of whom (save Nobby) served on Tom's Prince's Administration They were spending a day on Brighthelmstone Beach, the private and exclusive wizarding resort near the more famous muggle Brighton Beach. They were outfitted in their bathing suits, crowded around an animated sandcastle. Cassie - cheeky as always - stood behind Tom and Nobby with her fingers making rabbit ears behind their heads, a perfect match for the actual rabbit ears she sprouted near her head. Ursula sat astride a laughing Tassos' shoulder, eagerly waving at the camera. Eleos was tucked against Nobby's opposite side, her head lain on his shoulder sporting a lazy smile. Erasmus was stretched out on the ground directly in front of the sandcastle, eyes alight with boyish delight as he flashed a thumbs-up.
Sameer couldn't help but chuckle in fond remembrance. 'Oh, those were the days.' The very few and very precious moments when they could all relax and just act like any normal teenager, in spite of Grindelwald's and the muggle world war. It was one of the few moments Tom properly looked his age; laughing and relaxed with each arm wrapped around the shoulders of Nobby and Sameer. It was his second year away from that dreadful muggle orphanage, living with Nobby and his family in their Sussex homestead. He looked significantly healthier and stronger, bearing a countenance of vitality he hadn't possessed during his first three years at Hogwarts.
A forlorn sigh escaped Sameer's lips. 'Good things never last.' Erasmus had ultimately succumbed to his father's expectations as he lost himself to pureblood dogma and his homicidal tendencies, ultimately perishing as a Death Eater. Nobby, Eleos, and their children had been brutally murdered by the Dark Lord. Tassos had been forced to flee to America, refusing to bend to his family's expectations to join up with the Dark Lord's forces. Ursula - a fierce warrior to the end - had perished as a Knight of Walpurgis, taking down a five-man squadron of Death Eaters during a notably violent skirmish in Little Whinging.
Leaning back in his chair Sameer closed his eyes as more memories washed over him. A sudden "WHOOSH!" of his Floo alerted him to an incoming guest.
It was Haseeb, clearly in a very foul mood. The two exchanged warm pleasantries as Sameer summoned his personal elf to lay out much-needed refreshment. As Haseeb launched into his status update regarding the persisting state of mandrake availability, only one thought ran through Sameer's mind: 'Well, things could be worse. At least I'm not the bloody Secret Keeper!'
Hogwarts - Great Hall, 12:19PM
"C'mon Luna, just a small bite. You need to eat something, you barely touched your breakfast this morning." Astoria tried beckoning the blonde to eat a bite of shepherd's pie with sweet gravy, the blonde's favorite.
"''M not hungry." Luna turned her head away, her face turned downward in a frown. Her long blonde hair was in a disheveled braid, coupled with a lightly rumpled uniform. Dark and heavy bags lined her pale blue eyes, a clear sign of her stress and unhappiness.
The poor witchling had been absolutely distraught after being resuscitated in the Slytherin Common Room, so much so that Snape had resorted to forcing a Calming Draught and Dreamless Sleep down her throat before instructing Miranda Bonnevie to take the blonde witch to her room. Luna had spent the following day in the Hospital Wing, curled by Eurus' bed and crying piteously. It'd taken a considerable amount of cajoling from Madame Pomfrey and Lady Seraphina to convince her to eat a little something, though she'd outright refused to leave her best friend's side. Xeno had appeared and tried to help, but to no avail.
Luna's mood had steadily declined since then. She barely paid attention in her classes, was missing homework assignments, and barely interacted with her friends, either listlessly staring or quietly crying. Horatio Pershore and Muriel Rothley had made the foolish mistake of rudely (and very loudly) insinuating in the Common Room that Luna's decline was a result of unrequited romantic attachment to her "girlfriend". Both had found themselves on the wrong end of Luna's wand, receiving a double-combo of Furnunculus Horribilis and having to spend almost an entire weekend in the Hospital Wing recovering. But the poor witchling still hadn't improved, growing more despondent as the days progressed. The worst had been a frantic Flint finding her - past curfew hours - crumpled in a weeping ball outside the abandoned second floor girls' lavatory, blubbering about "wanting to find a clue about just who could have done this!". They were all terribly worried about her, knowing the current state of affairs couldn't last.
"You've got to keep your strength up Luna." Yurika's tone was quiet and gentle, in complete understanding of the witch's feelings. She and Ginny had grown to be very close, and she missed her best friend terribly. "You've barely been eating or sleeping properly for the past weeks. I know…I know you miss her, but you can't allow yourself to wither away either. Eurus wouldn't want that-"
"You don't know anything about what Eurus would want," Luna hissed with narrowed eyes. Yurika's eyes widened at her rude tone, as did Astoria's and that of the Silver Trio. Things were beyond bad if Luna Lovegood was reacting like this.
From his vantage Harry could only stare quietly, before suddenly feeling his mind whir-click in understanding.
"Well it seems like you don't have a clue about what Eurus would want either Luna." The blonde's head whipped at that, eyes wide at Harry's unexpectedly snide tone (especially towards her). "Look at you sitting there; wasting and wallowing away in your misery. It's pathetic." He sneered at her, choosing to ignore all of the shocked expressions of his surrounding Housemates. "Do you think you're doing Eurus, or Draco, or Ginny any favors by squandering your strength, strength that could be properly devoted to helping us find who did this to them? Is that really the kind of friend that you are?"
For a moment Luna looked completely stricken, causing Harry to wonder if he'd maybe gone too far. He wasn't the only one; Blaise, Astoria, and Yurika looked thunderstruck as Theo open-mouth glared at his friend. A few beats passed as Luna alternated between staring at Harry and the space just above his head. With a sigh of defeat, she reached past Yurika and pulled her shepherd's pie plate closer to her, taking slow but full bites. Astoria gave a firm nod of thanks in Harry's direction as she focused on her meal.
"What the hell was all that for?!" hissed Theo angrily.
"Honey didn't work," replied Harry in a whisper, leveling a pointed stare at Yurika who nodded gratefully. "Figured I'd try vinegar." Theo glared for another moment before deflating, nodding in understanding. Everyone ate in relative silence for a few moments, before jumping as a loud 'BANG!' sounded through the hall as the doors were forcefully flung open.
It was Gilderoy Lockhart, outfitted in luxurious robes of flamingo, bubblegum, and cotton candy pinks. His sleek auburn hair bore a uniquely glossy pink sheen, coupled with lightly pink cheeks, and (from Harry's vantage anyway), pink bits of glitter dusted across his eyelids. Draped on his arm (held aloft as gallantly as possible) was Madame Zenith Xeep, outfitted in robes as lavishly pink as Lockhart's. Small gilded butterflies danced around the pink roses artfully arranged in her hair, and her pink glitter covered skin sparkled. A pronounced wave of murmuring sounded in the expansive hall as many students openly gawked and pointed at the outrageous sight. Little Colin Creevey hefted his camera, excitedly clicking away.
Trailing behind the would-be couple was a veritable army of flying baby Cupids, covered in gossamer togas in identical shades of pink. Those bearing gilded miniature instruments followed closely behind the couple as the rest ascended to the charmed ceiling, covering almost every inch of available space. As one, Madame Xeep and Lockhart ascended the steps of the Head Table. They stopped when they reached the middle step, linking their fingers before turning to stare out at the Hogwarts crowd.
"Gilderoy?! What is the meaning of this?!" McGonagall looked equal parts outraged and scandalized, a hand clutching at her chest. Dumbledore, interestingly enough, looked thoroughly amused if not a bit excited at the ensuing spectacle, an expression shared by Flitwick. Babbling and Sinestra looked curious as Sprout, Hooch, and Hagrid stared in open shock. Snape did not look amused, eyes narrowed in suspicion at what would no doubt be an absolute tableau of sheer tomfoolery. What they all failed to notice was Trelawney's reaction; gone was the usual faraway expression of distraction that clouded her rather massive eyes. The witch stared intently (too intently) at Lockhart, eyes never once blinking.
"Ah, fear not Professor, ha-Ha! I arranged this all with the Headmaster's approval!" Minerva sharply turned to Albus, who merely gazed at her with a cheeky smile as his eyes did their damnable twinkling. Lockhart turned back to the assembled students. "Today, as we all know, is Valentine's Day! When love - be it filial or amorous or even…quixotic - dances in the air as Venus herself parts the heavens and grants us the boons of her divinity, ha-Ha!" His expression turned somber. "We've experienced some tragedies this year (Harry saw Luna flinch at the corner of his eye), but alas, we cannot allow ourselves to succumb to the sadness said tragedies have caused."
Lockhart stood even straighter and prouder as Madame Xeep looked upon him with open awe and a touch of lust as the man loudly continued on. "Rather, we must seek the succor of the light that remains so we may, united as one, banish the darkness back to the abyss that houses the forces and leagues of darkness! As a great man once said, 'Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, when one only remembers to turn on the light'." Dumbledore's eyes widened in recognition. "Ladies and gentlemen, let us be the ones to pull the switch! Now, ALLONS-Y!" And with a sharp gesture towards the flying Cupid band, they began playing a hauntingly beautiful tone. As one, he and Madame Xeep launched into a breathtaking performance of Tornami a dir che m'ami, surprising many in the Hall with the beauty of their skill. Especially Lockhart, whose vibrantly rich tenor blended beautifully with Madame Xeep's trilling coloratura.
As they sang, the remaining cupids spread across the ceiling rained charmed and glittering Valentine cards (mixed in with shimmering charmed confetti) they kept in pouches slung across their bodies. The cards fell into the eager hands of the students below; some cards contained Sugar Quills, some Chocolate Frogs, some Sugary Fae Wings, and some Candy Floss. A very select few contained small puffs of highly diluted aerosolized Amortentia, which made the physical card lightly smell like the person one was attracted to. Miranda Bonnevie, upon recognizing the soft and uniquely particular scent of mowed grass, orange clove soap, parchment ink, and broom polish would blush a bright red while deftly not looking in the direction of the Gryffindor table.
Soon, Lockhart and Madame Xeep ended their incredible duet, bowing at the applause - some more enthusiastic than others - that ensued. Dumbledore, Sprout, Cho Chang, Pansy Parkinson (shockingly enough), and a handful of others were giving standing ovations whilst yelling "BRAVO!".
"Well," said Flitwick excitedly to a stone-faced Snape as he alternated between wiping his eyes and enthusiastically clapping. "This is much better than the sheer chaos he unleashed on the school on Valentine's Day in 1980. He sent 800 Valentines, all to himself! Merlin the stench of the owl droppings was utterly foul, we had to cancel lunch because of it!"
Severus snorted at that depiction, wondering if Gilderoy Lockhart was truly a pompously poncy peacock who was actually playing the part of talented and powerful wizard.
7 March 1993 - Professor Lockhart's Office, 8:30PM
"Ah, Ms. Lovegood, Mr. Potter, just in time! Come, come!"
The two nodded politely to Lockhart and entered to stand by the remaining members of Team Mysterioso. It'd taken Harry quite a bit to convince Severus to allow both he and Luna to attend this late night session, in direct violation of curfew. The older wizard had insisted that he would come by to pick up the two Housemates no later than 10:30PM, and that if either were late, they could expect their remaining year to be jam packed with detention.
Once everyone was present, Lockhart sealed the office with a truly impressive number of privacy and locking spells as everyone looked on with varying degrees of curiosity and wariness.
While Lockhart was casting his spells, he instructed Penelope to retrieve his Pensieve from his personal cabinet to be placed upon the center table, informing her to be careful since it was a family heirloom. Harry's brows rose in surprise; Pensieves were extremely rare and very expensive, an expense typically only affordable to the old families. From the little he knew about Lockhart, the man was a halfblood whose family was of modest means. Harry's brows rose when Penelope gingerly set the rather heavy object down on the table; it was quite large, a little over two three feet in diameter made of beautifully pearlescent material that color-shifted between baby blue and soft lilac. The interior was engraved with a myriad of runes Harry didn't recognize, save the occasional interspersion of an Elder Futhark symbol. Covering its rim (and extended to the outer body) were etchings of softly shimmering constellations that looked vaguely familiar to the young Potter, but he couldn't exactly remember where and when he'd seen them before.
"Welcome, team," Lockhart said addressing the group. "Now before we begin, I'd like to make some things clear. I have already extracted Miss Lovegood's memory of her mother's unfortunate demise, but at her request I have not reviewed it myself yet." Harry gently took Luna and softly squeezed, an action she repeated in gratitude. "Miss Lovegood was ... insistent that the rest of Team Mysterioso should all review the scene together. However, I'm afraid I must insist on a condition of my own – namely, that each of you swear an Unbreakable Vow that you will not reveal anything you see in the memory or that we discuss in our subsequent debriefing without Miss Lovegood's consent."
"An Unbreakable Vow?!" exclaimed a scandalized Penelope Clearwater. "That's…that's rather extreme don't you think?" Hermione and Harry nodded in agreement, both wondering what the hell the man was playing at. Lockhart's expression turned serious before answering Penelope.
"Miss Clearwater, trust me when I say I do not make such a suggestion idly. We do not know exactly what we're about to witness in this memory, but, we do know we're about to witness the final moments of Pandora Lovegood's life, an event that we've long posited may have something to do with the nigh infrangible obscuration of Miss Lovegood's seemingly supernatural perceptive abilities. It… it is not beyond the realm of possibility that we are about to witness the commission of one or more crimes." Several eyes widened at that. "As such, I feel that I have an obligation to protect Miss Lovegood from any negative consequences that might arise from our viewing this memory. Should the memory be innocuous, she can always release us from the Vow immediately after our meeting ends. If it is not innocuous, it's quite possible that we may all one day be thankful for the protections that the Vow will afford us against anyone who seeks to recover that information from our minds. Especially against our will."
The four students all considered that carefully. "Alright," Penelope said after a few moments. "In the spirit of my House and our quest for knowledge…I consent." Lockhart nodded gratefully as Harry and Hermione weighed their options before they too verbally consented. With a grateful nod, Gilderoy Lockhart served as the bonder as they all swore an oath to Luna on their magic and lives that they would never reveal whatever they learned from reviewing her memory without her consent.
Soon after, Lockhart quickly explained the mechanics of the Pensieve, before quickly pouring in Luna's memory. The silvery liquid swirled and turned semi-gaseous, spreading across the entirety of the basin, small vapors licking at the edges. Together, all five dipped their heads into the Pensieve to view the memory.
Harry's first impression was how life-like everything looked. It felt as though he were reliving the moment as it had occurred, freely able to walk and move around. He marveled at the depth of detail conveyed in Luna's memory, internally wondering if that was how all memories could look in a Pensieve.
They were standing in a rather large basement, retrofitted to serve as a research laboratory. One of the stone-hewn walls was teeming with books, some of which looked impossibly old. Another wall was lined with an abundance of Potions materials, many entirely too exotic for Harry to recognize.
But that wasn't the most fascinating thing about the room.
Crude hand-drawn protective runes were spread across the entirety of the floor, the ceiling, and the remaining two bare walls. Oddly enough, Harry thought the symbols all mirrored each other; the symbols on the floor mirrored those of the ceilings (save backwards, oddly enough), as did the symbols on the back-wall mirrored those on the front-wall. Barricading the door was a large table upon which lay exactly 13 pages of hand-written rune sequences, arithmancy formulas, and various other writings in a strange runic text that Harry - despite activating the Zoom feature of his glasses - was unable to properly make out. In fact, focusing too long on the written symbols made his eyes swim and the strange sensation of…something light and seemingly imperceptible crawl up his neck, so he shook head to clear it and focused on something else.
Near the door was a seven-year-old Luna sitting peacefully on the floor playing with her dolls. A large open space had been cleared away, leaving an open area where Pandora Lovegood was painstakingly carving still more runes into the wooden floor with a strange curved blade, muttering softly to herself as she worked. Penelope identified the language with a whisper as being mostly Elder Futhark.
"There's no need to whisper, Miss Clearwater," said Lockhart, though his own voice was softer than his usual bombast. "Being nothing but the shades of times past, they cannot hear us talk."
Hermione and Penelope moved over to examine the desk. Both of them felt a pang of deep sadness at the sight of the adorable little girl who played happily with no idea of how her life was about to change for the worse. Then, Hermione noticed the various papers on the desk. She could not move them for they were ephemeral to her touch, but she could read the ones on top. She frowned.
"Professor, how accurate are these memories? Surely Luna can't remember with perfect recall everything that's written here."
"Pensieves, Miss Granger, are peculiar things. We don't rightly know how they work, as there's only one magical village in Africa where they're produced ... at a rate of one every ten years, which is why they're not more common. The village in question, naturally, guards the secrets of its techniques zealously. What we do know is that pensieves somehow operate at the intersection of mind-magic and time-magic. The pensieve uses the inserted memory to track its way back through time to create a highly accurate vision of the place and period depicted therein, one which is in many ways more accurate than the original memory. For example, it is possible to review the memories of a deaf man and actually hear words uttered in his presence that he himself could not have heard. It is also possible to review the memories of someone who was blindfolded and see things that he himself was prevented from actually seeing, and, of course, it's no problem at all to examine someone's memory and review people and events that the person wasn't even paying attention to at the time. The only exception is when the donor's memories have been altered through Obliviation or Occlumency, though in the former situation, the alterations are readily apparent in a pensieve. For the purposes of this excursion, you may assume that everything you see is exactly as it was at the time in question."
Both Harry and Hermione absorbed that information as the Gryffindor resumed her study of the desk and its contents. Meanwhile, Harry and Luna (who were still holding hands) moved over to where Pandora Lovegood was working.
"Penelope," Harry asked over his shoulder, "is this ... normal runeworking?"
"No, it's not," she answered as she came to stand by the Slytherins. "Honestly, I've neither seen nor heard of someone combining runes like this. There is zero algorithmic order to the symbols she's using, not even a proper base logarithm. It makes no sense! Even less so that she's…carving them into the walls and floor like this." She shivered in spite of herself, as though suddenly chilled. "It's…it's bizarre." Penelope visibly shuddered, causing Harry's lips to thin significantly.
"I'm not surprised," whispered Luna, eyes uncommonly wide and so very sad. "Her nargles have gone absolutely mad." She was staring directly above her mother's head, eyes shimmering with unshed tears as they followed the path of the creatures only she could see.
"Miss Lovegood," said Lockhart with some concern. "Can you…can you describe what you see?" Luna shivered again, prompting Harry to squeeze her hand again in comfort.
"Yes…her nargles are spinning widdershins and at an odd angle, almost as if…almost as if they've been knocked off their axis. There's…there's fury-flies flitting in and out around them, but, but the spinning force of her nargles are buffeting them away. Her Blibbering Humdinger is just…just sitting there, as if it's awaiting instructions. It's not even trying to get control of her nargles, it's just sitting there, eyes closed like it's in pain!" She quickly looked away and wiped at her eyes, nodding thankfully at Hermione as she squeezed her shoulder in comfort. "It's no wonder she's a mess…her… her magic is a mess too!"
Luna wasn't wrong. Pandora's hair was disheveled, and she was outfitted in a thin gossamer white gown. She looked as though she hadn't slept in days, and it was obvious that she'd been crying. Indeed, as they watched, she looked up and over at her daughter who was still playing quietly, staring at her with an unfathomable expression of heartbreak. Then, she sniffled and wiped away tears with a sleeve. Though she would never admit it out loud, Hermione thought the woman's demeanor hinted at some form of insanity. Lockhart also noted the woman's appearance before turning his attention to the runes on the ceiling.
They seemed to be in a crude circular pattern and somewhat concentric, almost like a hypnotic spiral. He vaguely recognized random repetitions of Ansuz, Naudiz, Sowilo, and Ear from the Elder Futhark rune chart, along with others he recognized from another text from a very long time ago.
Gulping, the man shifted his focus to the runes of the floor, recognizing them as the mirror image of those on the ceiling. They too were the same Elder Futhark as above, along with another text he also recognized from a very long time ago. A text, he noted with mounting internal horror, as written entirely backwards. Together, all the symbols were meant to invoke the concepts of the World, Protection, Need, Power, Erasure, Death…a Pact. He shuddered, an action Harry didn't fail to miss.
"Professor, I found something," said Hermione in a quiet voice. She was pointing at a letter off to the side of the desk partially buried under pages of Arithmancy which had been scrawled in a nervous chicken-scratch handwriting. Most of the letter was covered up, but what was visible was the letterhead at the top which said "From the Desk of Saul Croaker, Voice of the Unspeakables".
"I've heard of the Unspeakables," said Hermione. "Though I'm still not clear on who they are or what they do."
"They're, um, a division of the Ministry," said Harry, who suddenly seemed quite nervous to discuss the issue. "They run the Department of Mysteries and do research into areas of magic that are forbidden for normal witches and wizards. Fitting, since…well…what they do - whatever it is they do - is literally considered unspeakable. All of everything they do is considered classified." Harry swallowed and looked around at the group. "Also, based on my study of wizarding genealogy, Croaker was also Pandora Lovegood's maiden name. I'm to assume that Saul is related to her, perhaps a father, uncle, grandfather, or granduncle."
Lockhart just blinked. "Indeed Mr. Potter, you are correct. It might also interest you all to know that the Voice of the Unspeakable is the only member of that organization whose name is publicly known, as he is the public spokesman for the group as his title implies. The rest all undergo rituals to occlude their Unspeakable identities from both memory and history. Well…so the rumors say, at least." Harry quirked his brow but didn't respond.
Lockhart glanced back towards Pandora Croaker Lovegood and saw that whatever runework she was doing would be done in just a few minutes. After considering the matter, Lockhart seemed to come to a decision, as he drew his wand and placed it over the papers covering the letter from Saul Croaker.
"It's a good thing you've all taken an Unbreakable Vow," he said, "because I'm not supposed to be able to do this. OBLIVIATE." To everyone's surprise, the spell caused the obscuring papers to vanish.
"Did you just erase some of Luna's memories?!" Harry asked somewhat testily.
"Technically and only temporarily. The memory will revert to its default condition when we leave. It's a… cheat of sorts that lets you see things in pensieve memories that would normally be hidden by other objects. Now quickly, let us examine Croaker's missive." And the five investigators crowded around the desk to do just that.
FROM THE DESK OF SAUL CROAKER, VOICE OF THE UNSPEAKABLES
- NAM OCULI TUI SOLUM -
My dearest Pandora,
Sending you this letter pains me more than I can say, but the signs are unmistakable. It is now clear that your daughter, my granddaughter, shares your beloved mother's gift, the one which mercifully skipped your generation. Luna is a Heliopath, both blessed and cursed with the power to see into the astral realms and perceive that which dwells in those strange domains which rest both atop and within our own. I would give anything, have tried everything, to conceal Luna's status, my child. You know that. But you also know that I am an Unspeakable, and I have oaths that I must fulfill. Moreover, Luna is not just a Heliopath. Since… since your mother's passing, she is also the only Heliopath known to exist in Wizarding Britain today. Her powers represent a matter of national security, and it is simply not possible for me to cover for you or her any further.
I will come for Luna on the first of the month. Please take the time between now and then to prepare Luna for what's to come and to enjoy the remaining time you have together. Once she has entered training with the Unspeakables, you will not see her again for a long time, if ever. I wish it could be some other way, but my hands are bound in this matter. Please forgive me.
Your loving father.
- NAM OCULI TUI SOLUM -
"What's a Heliopath?" asked Harry in confusion.
"Well…" responded Luna with a startled expression. "I'd thought it's an equine fire spirit that burns everything it touches. I… I'd believed Minister Fudge has an army of them at his disposal." She stared at the group with wide eyes. "I'm…I'm guessing I'm wrong about that."
"Indeed," said Lockhart in a grim voice.
"Sir?" asked Harry.
The man hesitated. Then, he glanced back towards Pandora Lovegood, who seemed nearly done with her carving. "Students, I haven't been completely honest with you or Miss Lovegood about the goal of this team. You see, there was one piece of information in my old CoMC text that I didn't share. The book described nargles and wrackspurts in general terms, but it also said that if you encounter someone who claims to be able to see such creatures, you should immediately report them to the Ministry, as such individuals are referred to as Heliopaths and are on the Conscription List."
"The what?" asked Hermione.
"The Conscription List," explained Harry. "It's a list of magical talents that don't require either a wand or a spell to use. If you have one of the talents on the list, and usually you're born with them, then ... you basically get drafted to work for the Ministry whether you want to or not. From what I know, Nymphadora Tonks is a metamorphmagus who had to register when she was a child. It helped her get into the Auror Academy, but she never really had a choice about working for the Ministry in some capacity." He turned to Lockhart somewhat angrily. "So what is a Heliopath and why is it so important that it leads to conscription for someone as young as eight?"
"To be honest, I'm still not completely certain, Mr. Potter. If I ever knew before this year, my memories were erased along with everyone else's. What little I know comes from a few paragraphs in an old textbook and what I just read from Croaker's letter. I know that the term has nothing to do with the sun or with flames. Rather, it comes from Dmitri Helios, a Greek wizard who documented the phenomenon in the 14th century and somewhat fatuously named it after himself. I deduce that Heliopathy allows one to perceive the Astral Plane and the creatures which exist there, creatures which apparently are superimposed over our dimension and which interact with us by reacting to our emotional states. As for why that's so useful for the Ministry, my conjecture is that if Ms. Lovegood can accurately perceive how our emotions affect the astral creatures that only she can see, then probably no amount of Occlumency could prevent her from reading emotions and telling truth from lies." He turned to stare at Luna significantly. "We're all readily aware of Ms. Lovegood's keen perception of our moods more often than not, no?"
Harry's eyes widened. That would be incredibly useful for the Ministry by itself, though he personally suspected there might be a lot more Luna would be able to do with her powers once she understood them. Which just left the question – why did everyone forget all about the matter? And as if in answer to that question, Harry and the others suddenly noticed that Pandora Lovegood had stopped inscribing runes and came to stand in the middle of the circle. Her wand was pointed upward, her arms were crossed at the wrist, creating a cradle above her head. Harry noticed that carved into each bloodied hand were runic symbols he did not recognize, but was perceptive enough to realize were mirror images of each other. A strange symbol had been carved into her exposed chest, and Harry swore he could feel a faint thrum of magic emanating from it. She started chanting softly, and the group huddled closer so as to hear the words.
"Sicut ego volo, ita fiat,
Sicut ego volo, ita fiat,
Sicut ego volo, ita fiat."
That gave Harry pause; while the ritual phase, "so mote it be" was often incorporated into vows and oaths, this was not how spells were supposed to be performed according to everything Hogwarts had taught them about magic. Specifically since the actual phrase was very rarely, if ever, spoken in Latin despite wizarding Britain's affinity for the language. The boy was surprised by how ... unnatural he found the scene. Pandora continued in a ragged voice.
"Ego matrem Azarath in tutelam voco,
Obsecro Azathoth, eum qui in tenebris iacet!
Rogo te ut transeas terminos mundi tui,
et intra meos ad videndum me!
Vide cor meum,
Vide mihi magicae,
Vide animam meam,
Te ipsum iudica!
Si enim dignus sum, da quod peto!
Si non sum, accipe cor meum, tolle magicam, tolle animam meam! Accipe omnes tres!
Oblivioni sit Heliopathy, fiat ita!
Sit nomen Heliopath detur oblivioni, fiat ita!
Omnes qui veritatem Heliopathy norunt obliviscantur, fiat ita!
Omnia argumenta Heliopathy opprimi et destrui debent, fiat ita!"
Fighting to ignore the harsh crescendo of Pandora's voice, Harry looked around the room wildly as both he and Luna squeezed their hands tightly. His sensation of unease had blossomed into one of mounting dread and fear despite his best efforts to Occlude. All of his mental barriers were being overcome by a new and frightening certainty that something was coming in response to Pandora Lovegood's call. Something alien and taboo and wrong. But above all, something with power completely beyond Harry's understanding. And with every word the witch uttered, that something drew ever nearer.
"Obliviscatur de Heliopathy et Luna donis meae, fiat ita!
Ministerium Heliopathy obliviscatur et dona mea Luna det, fiat ita!
Floreat Luna mea ab illis qui laedere et abutere volunt viribus, fiat ita!"
Harry felt a sudden sharp pain in both his hands. He looked down and realized that in addition to Luna's death-grip, Hermione had grabbed his other hand and now held it in a vice, her face now unnaturally pale as her breathing quickened in a panic. Luna was transfixed in horror by the scene and stared unblinkingly at a spot above her mother's head, eyes growing impossibly wider with each passing second. Penelope kept looking about the room as if afraid something blasphemous would crawl through the walls. And Lockhart…well…the Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, Defeater of the Bandon Banshee, the man who had hunted the Wagga Wagga Werewolves to extinction looked uncharacteristically horrified, as pale and bloodless as a ghost! Gradually, all of them became aware of a discordant humming sound that grew louder and louder with each word Pandora Lovegood spoke. From outside the door, Harry could hear a banging noise and the sound of Xenophilius Lovegood yelling for his wife, but that was soon barely audible over the fiendish humming.
"Da mihi quod peto,
ac vicissim sume magicam meam! Omnis gutta! Fiat ita!"
With those words, Harry struggled not to panic. At this point blood ran from her eyes, nose, and mouth. Her palms and her chest wept blood, all of which flowed down into the carved symbols on the floor and crawled upwards to fill the symbols on the ceiling. The humming was now painfully loud, and the feeling that something inconceivable was coming had been replaced with the certainty that it was here… all around them!
"Percutiantur pacta nostra! Judica me dignum! Fiat ita! Fiat Ita! FIAT ITA!"
Pandora cried out and as one, Team Mysterioso fought to keep their eyes open, to keep their concentration against their mounting panic, to keep from crawling out of their own skin.
It was to no avail.
With another ragged breath she began to speak once more, and the sound was so alien, and guttural, and unnatural, as though she was speaking backwards as she shouted with the unfathomable strength of one hundred voices!
Finally, she took a painfully deep breath and screamed.
"IMAGO DEI!"
And with that, Harry had the brief sensation of seeing two portals open above and below the screaming woman. The one above Pandora's head opened to somewhere of Light-and-Peace-and-Serenity…the one below her feet opened to somewhere…of Darkness-and-Chaos-and-Oblivion… Something ephemeral flowed out of the portal above her head and rushed over to Luna, creating a physical barrier between the oblivious girl and her mother. The portal near Pandora's feet, on the other hand, grew larger and larger and larger…as something crawled its way out!
Harry barely registered Lockhart screaming "NOOOOOOOO!" with a voice wrought with abject terror as Pandora Lovegood began to scream in helpless agony as she was pulled downward, simultaneously unholstering his wand and whirled it wildly overhead. Instantly, Harry and the other students felt a powerful force pick them up off the ground and thrust them out of the pensieve, skidding across the floor of the DADA classroom away from the-now shaking pensieve. But despite the change of circumstance, the alien humming was still growing in power.
Instantly, Lockhart screamed to Harry to help him cast a shield. As one, the two wizards jumped back up to their feet and pointed their wands at the pensieve, which was now violently shaking in response to the awful sound that was emanating from within it. As one, they cried "PROTEGO MAXIMUS!"
A powerful radiant shield manifested around the table and the pensieve sitting on it. Immediately both cried out in pain as small rivulets of blood trickled out of their noses. A few seconds later, Luna, Hermione, and Penelope added their own shields to the first two, groaning and shaking against the pain as they fought to push back whatever force of darkness attempted to breach their protection.
It wasn't enough.
Whatever creature that caused the unholy humming seemingly grew stronger, resisting the combined power of their shields. Their expressions grew panicked, wondering if they were all about to meet their untimely deaths.
Suddenly, Harry was struck by an idea.
"Professor! On my mark, you and I will allow our shields to lapse while the others hold on." Five sets of wide eyes met his statement. "You and I will cast a Patronus Charm to try and beat this thing back! Whatever…whatever this is, is esoteric in nature. Patronus Charm is esoteric in nature. Maybe…maybe they'll cancel each other out!" Lockhart paused for a beat before nodding in acquiescence. As one, he and Harry broke their shields and together cast "EXPECTO PATRONUM!"
A thick silvery fog erupted from Harry's wand as Daisy bounded out of Lockhart's, leaping headfirst into the Pensieve with an enraged howl. From his vantage, Harry saw…SOMETHING FORBIDDEN…recoil upon contact with his fog while screaming in PAIN as Daisy clamped down her powerful bone-crushing jaws against one its…parts and shook her head violently. Releasing the being she charged at it once more, biting furiously and using her body to physically buck against the creature, not stopping until sludged its way back into the portal from whence it came. In a blink, the portal closed as Daisy howled in victory, leaping back out of the pensieve to stand protectively in front of her master.
As one, Hermione, Penelope, and Luna allowed their shields to lapse as Harry canceled his Patronus mist. Daisy howled once more before slowly fading away.
They all sagged to the floor, wheezing in shock and exhaustion. Suddenly, Penelope gasped as she stared open-mouthed at the table. It was the remains of Lockhart's supposedly indestructible pensieve, now shattered into a half-dozen fragments. The man sighed and wiped the blood from under his nose.
"Well, it's a good thing Mother wasn't here to see this. She'd have a bloody conniption!"
Some minutes later, the members of Team Mysterioso were back around the table which had been cleared of pensieve fragments. Each held a mug of hot chocolate that they quietly sipped from, along with nibbling on bits of chocolate bars the Professor kept in seemingly endless reserve. Though calmer, there were still many questions that required answers.
"We will discuss these matters now, and then we will not discuss them again," Lockhart said firmly. "Team Mysterioso is done. You will each earn a perfect 100% for your efforts on this team and will be excused from writing a paper at the end of term. That does not apply to you, Mr. Potter, as you will still be expected to write a paper on the Patronus Charm unless you succeed in manifesting a corporeal one, in which case you too will be excused. I will say that I am thoroughly impressed with your ability to manifest a shield tonight, as well as being clever enough to ascertain the charm's effectiveness against…that which we faced. Well done." Harry nodded as graciously as possible. "However, I implore you all that the minute you leave this room, you will not even think about what you saw in the memory, not if you know what's good for you. I would never have allowed you to witness the memory if I'd known that Miss Lovegood's mother was going to use" he hesitated and grimaced "that spell."
"Professor," inquired Hermione quietly, "just what is ... Imago Dei. I mean, I know it literally means 'Image of God,' but why does that mean?"
Lockhart rubbed his forehead in frustration. "First of all, please refer to that spell by its initials 'ID' and not by its given name. That spell's name is dangerous, students. Say those two words in front of the wrong people, and you risk being deemed too dangerous even to be allowed to rot in Azkaban!"
"Those even suspected of summoning Wild Magic are simply flung through the Veil of Death," Harry said softly as he remembered Countess Zabini's words about the dangers of discussing forbidden magic. Lockhart's head jerked in his direction, and the older man frowned in annoyance.
"Has anyone ever told you, Mr. Potter, that you are dangerously well-informed?" he said irritably.
"Not ... in those particular words, but I take your meaning," Harry replied with a too cheeky smile.
"You make ...you make that spell sound worse than an Unforgivable, sir," said Penelope in a surprised whisper.
"To our government, Miss Clearwater, it is," he replied after taking a sip of hot chocolate.
"So once again, what is ... that spell?" asked Hermione with some asperity. "Is it like a Memory Charm only with a global reach?"
Lockhart laughed as if with a mild delirium. "Oh no, Miss Granger. It is not a Memory Charm."
"Well then," Luna asked with a sob, "what does it do? What could it possibly do that was worth my mother's life?" Harry wrapped an arm around the crying girl and rubbed her shoulder in comfort, pleased when he felt her physically calm down.
He sighed as if mentally drained. "It does ... whatever you want it to, Miss Lovegood."
"I don't understand," said Penelope. "Every spell has a design matrix that sets its parameters. Every Charm does one thing. Sometimes, that one thing can be pretty broadly defined, but ultimately every Charm does one thing and one thing only. What do you mean ID does 'whatever you want?'"
"I meant what I said, Miss Clearwater. ID ... has no limiting parameters. You describe as clearly as possible the outcome you want. You articulate what you're willing to sacrifice to get it. And apparently, you say 'so mote it be' a lot. And if Magic judges your proposed sacrifice worthy of what you've demanded, then the spell will reorder Reality itself according to your specified outcome. If not, then the spell will fail ... or possibly it will take something else it considers sufficient and grant your request anyway. Or perhaps provide a suitably ironic variation on your request. The legends vary."
Hermione was confused. "But why is it such a secret? If there's a spell so versatile that it can potentially do anything, why is the Ministry, according to you, willing to kill to conceal it?"
Lockhart took a deep breath and exhaled. "Miss Granger, I'm not a devotee of Muggle fiction, but are there not Muggle stories in which a character is gifted with one or more magical wishes or the equivalent only to destroy himself when he uses that gift unwisely?"
She thought for an instant and then nodded. "I know there's a short story about a cursed monkey's paw. It gives you three wishes, but it would always twist your intentions so that your wish is granted in a way you didn't want. Wish for money, and it comes in the form of a death benefit after your son is brutally killed in a workplace accident. That sort of thing."
"Precisely. Now imagine that story except that the monkey's paw doesn't stop at three wishes. Instead, you can potentially make an infinite number of wishes until one finally kills you due to bad phrasing on your part. Imagine also that in addition to yourself, there are thousands, possibly millions of people who each have monkey paws of their own."
The students sat aghast at Lockhart's description. "It would tear the world apart," said Harry in a horrified awe.
"Quite so," said Lockhart. "ID is one of a very small number of spells which are considered to be so dangerous to the entire world that anyone believed capable of casting them is marked for death. Never mention what you know about that spell!"
Shaken by their experiences and by Lockhart's intensity, the students all acquiesced.
"Professor," said Harry after a few moments. "There was something else I noticed. Well, there were a few other things I noticed, but these are the few that stood out to me." Lockhart took another sip of his cocoa before nodding at Harry to continue.
"Pandora mentioned Azarath and Azathoth at the beginning of her ritual, specifically invoked their names." He closed his eyes as he recalled the specific details. "She called upon the 'guardian mother of Azarath for protection' and specifically beseeched 'Azathoth, he who lies in darkness'. What does that mean? Who are they?" Lockhart sighed as if in defeat.
"Before I tell you, all of you, you must swear a Secrecy Oath to never reveal the details of what I share with you with anyone without my explicit and willing consent. As a matter of fact, I will ensure the Secrecy Oath extends to the information I shared about ID, for the sake of our own protection. I know we have already sworn an Unbreakable Vow that should technically cover this as well but this…this is different. We cannot risk even a shred of possibility of its discovery." The students exchanged concerned glances but ultimately agreed. Once the oath was sworn, Lockhart launched into an explanation.
"Those…beings Pandora invoked are two which are found…in the Wild. Wizardkind believes the Wild to be the realm that lies both within and without our own; adjacent enough to be accessed through specific rituals, but far away enough that one can neither casually nor accidentally…stumble upon it. There was a time, many centuries ago before wanded magic was the norm where the Wild was believed to rule our very Reality, before it was banished away by the ancestor mages whose descendants make up the current Wizengamot. There are three aspects of the Wild; the Divine Wild, the Dark Wild, and the Wild Unknown. The Divine Wild houses beings - like Azarath - whose power is altruistic in nature; magick whose sole intent is to protect, mainly protecting the sanctity of our Reality. The known text that houses the spells to access the Divine Wild is called The Elysium Opus, and there are only seven known copies in the entire world. On the other end, the Dark Wild houses beings whose power - like Azathoth - is destructive in nature, magicks whose sole purpose is to unravel and destroy our Reality. The known text that houses the comprehensive spells to access this realm is called The Anathema Codex.
To access either realm requires sacrifice, but with differing intentions. To access the magick of the Divine Wild, one's intent must be completely unmarred by selfish reasons and ego; you desire must be to protect regardless of its effect on you. If necessary, you should be willing to give your life, your magic, your very soul even for protection. The opposite is true for the Dark Wild; your intent must be to destroy in order to gain, with the full awareness that what you gain can be corrupted against your will, like a monkey paw." Lockhart paused and took a hearty sip of his cocoa, wishing above all else he didn't have to be having this particular conversation.
"And the Wild Unknown?" asked Hermione.
"It's just that, Unknown. It is posited that some of its beings and magicks may be Divine or Dark in nature, there's no guarantee. As far as I know, there is no corresponding magical text that houses these magicks that can be accessed, readily or otherwise."
Everyone quietly digested the bombshells Lockhart had dropped on them. Soon Hermione spoke:
"There was something else too, Professor. At one point, it sounded like Pandora was speaking backwards." Lockhart tensed, an action Luna and Harry didn't fail to notice. "It sounded like she was saying-"
"DO NOT SPEAK OF IT!" They all jumped at his thunderous tone, Penelope dropping her hot cocoa in alarm. Lockhart took a few calming breaths before resuming his seat and summoning another full mug of cocoa for the Ravenclaw as he vanished the mess of her ruined cup. "My apologies Miss Granger, you took me by surprise. But I will ask that you - all of you - never repeat what you heard Pandora speak. Ever. It is beyond the forbidden and should neither be spoken or heard out loud. Ever. Rid your mind completely of it, and never think of it again."
After answering a few final questions, Lockhart sent the students to their dorms for the night. Troubled by their experiences, each of them had difficulty falling asleep. It took Harry an extra half hour of Occludic decompression before he felt comfortable enough to settle down and think about going to sleep. Selma, as faithful as ever, wrapped herself snuggly against his body in a gesture of comfort to aid him in sleep.
Luna had the greatest difficulty. Not only had she finally seen and received some semblance of closure regarding the cause of her mother's death, she now had a name - a true name - for her ubiquitous and quite frankly prodigious skill. If-no, when Eurus awakened, she'd have something special to share with her best friend.
However, that wasn't the cause of her insomnia. There was…something tickling her brain, some detail which she knew was important but failed to notice when it mattered. Her mind wrestled with it for a while until, finally, as sleep overtook her as she let the thought go and would not remember it again for quite some time.
It was the image of the Sowilo rune which was thoroughly integrated into Pandora Lovegood's forbidden ritual, along with the haunting, inexplicably nagging feeling that she'd seen the lightning-shaped rune of power somewhere else before.
AN 1: 'Tornami a dir che m'ami' is an aria in Don Pasquale where protagonists Ernesto and Norina confess their love for each other in a rather sweet (if not overly intimate) way. Quite fitting for Lockhart's whole speech. For Madame Zenith Xeep I'm envisioning a young-ish Dame Joan Sutherland.
AN 2: The concepts of the Divine Wild, Dark Wild, and Wild Unknown will be more thoroughly explored in Book 3. The Elysium Opus will also be discussed in greater depth then.
AN 3: RE: The whole "speaking backwards" thing Pandora does will be revealed further on. It's kinda creepy but...fitting thematically with everything that's going on.
AN 4: Hope you liked the peek into Tom's full Prince Administration. More will be revealed Book 3, including 'The Siege of Little Whinging'.