Rebirth

Rebirth

Chapter 4: The Legend of the Asterlyth

"You... are our teacher?" Geno couldn't believe her eyes.

"Yes I am," the centaur said. "My name is Elektra, so you shall call me that. I don't believe in that nonsense of addressing your teachers as 'Professor', 'Sir' or 'Madam'. I have a name, and you will address me by it, the same way I will address you by your own names."

She gestured for the children to sit down, which they obeyed in dumbstruck silence. She then turned to her table (which was obviously chair-less, since she was a centaur), picked up some scrolls, and examined them.

"I have to say," she then added, "that I was surprised to hear that five of you were sorted into Avis. In a century, only three students, all of them in different eras, have had that privilege. A very select house, Avis." She gazed at their puzzled expressions, and continued. "The only student we were expecting to be sorted into Avis was..." (she checked one of the scrolls) "... Dulce Zagalo."

"Me?" asked Dulce, in complete puzzlement. "But my parents studied at Durmstrang!"

"Indeed," Elektra said, examining the red-headed girl with a piercing stare. "But your father would have been an Avis, had he studied here. His father was one, and so was his father before him. It's all in your blood."

The last sentence, however, was said to all of them instead of just Dulce, though none of them noticed.

"Now, Special Studies... You're probably wondering what this is, and why you have to take it... Well, think of it as a kind of study group, where the lessons you had during the previous week will be developed in order to give you an even deeper insight into them. Each week, you will be given a certain assignment about one of those lessons. You will also read a book each week, and you will be questioned about it. Avises are meant to be quick of mind, and those mental skills need to be developed and strengthened. Of course, we will also discuss extra-curricular matters once in a while, and exercise your bodies as much as your minds. As the last descendant of the great Chiron," she paused but quickly resumed her speech, disappointed at their lack of reaction, "I intend to add his teaching objectives to those that are asked of me by this school. Now, any questions?"

All five of them raised their hands, their minds filled with all the doubts they had been having ever since they were sorted into Avis and, especially, since they began their riddle-solving journey. However, Elektra ignored them.

"No questions? Well, in that case, we'll finish for today. Next week we will have a real lesson. Meanwhile, I want you to do a research on Sphinxes, since you had the chance of seeing a real one just now. And the book you'll have to read will be The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts."

"What?" Half-Pint complained. "A book on Dark Arts? But that's heavy stuff! We're just first-years!"

"It's a history book... Hylas, isn't it?" Elektra said, smiling. "It doesn't have any kind of content that might be classified as dangerous. In fact, if you go to the library, you will find that it is not located in the restricted area."

"But -"

"This is final, Hylas. I want all five of you to read The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts for next week. Pay close attention to the legend of the Asterlyth and to the chapter concerning Harry Potter, as those two will be the main points we will discuss.

"Now, I should point out, before you leave, that you don't need to use that entry again. I shall indicate to you a passageway that leads directly to this classroom, and you will use that from now on."

She led them through a door next to the blackboard, which was big enough for her to go through. Geno assumed this was the way she took in order to leave the room.

"Now, you just need to go up the stairs, until you find a door. No alternate directions this time, and no riddles or puzzles. From now on, you will use this way, unless I ask you specifically to use the other passage again. Good day, and see you next week."

She then returned to the classroom, closing the door behind them.

"So, what do you think?"

"Well, she said it's safe."

And they began to climb the stairs. After what seemed like a couple of floors, they finally reached the door.

"I know this," said Half-Pint, as he crossed the door and looked at the corridor on the other side. "This is just a floor below our common room, isn't it?"

"Well, in that case, it's easy to remember," said Geno.

"And much easier to go through," Dulce added. "I hope I never see that Sphinx again."

"According to the centaur, you might," Aenor said, looking rather displeased with the idea.

The five of them then advanced towards the upper floor, where they found the mirror that served as a passageway to their common room.

As they re-entered the room, they found Professor Ventura there. Completely unaware of their arrival, she was chanting some incomprehensible words, while pointing her wand at the witch's statue between their dormitory rooms. A strange mist enriched with sparks of silver and gold surrounded the two figures, and the statue itself glowed with increasing intensity.

The five children stood there, amazed and speechless. Their gaze shifted alternately between the glowing statue and the Professor, who seemed to grow exhausted as the enchantment continued.

After ten minutes, however, she let out a yell of pain, dropped her wand, and collapsed to the floor. The mist faded immediately, and the statue returned to normal.

"Professor!"

The students rushed to her rescue, and helped her to sit in one of the golden chairs near the fountain. As she sat, she let out an almost inaudible "Thank you."

"Are you all right, Professor?" Irina asked, in deep concern.

"What was that all about?" Aenor asked.

"Do you need to drink some water?" Half-Pint added, pointing to the fountain.

"In reply to all your questions," the Professor replied weakly, "yes, I'll explain later, and it's not necessary, thank you, Thessaly."

They waited in silence for Ventura to regain her strengths. After a while, Geno decided to risk a question.

"You have never told us who the statue represents."

"This statue was offered to Ingarnal by the Hogwarts headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. It depicts a famous athlete that studied there."

"If she studied at Hogwarts, why was her statue placed here, in the Avis common room?"

"Well, it goes well with the furniture, doesn't it?" she smiled. "Besides, had she been an Ingarnal student, she would have been sorted into Avis. To Dumbledore's pity, this was only discovered when it was too late..."

"Too late for what?"

But then, Ventura's expression hardened.

"Nothing," she said dryly. "Well, I imagine Elektra has given you an assignment. I expect you to have it ready by next week. You don't want to tell a centaur you haven't done your homework."

And with that, she got up, stumbled a bit due to the remaining dizziness, and went out through the passageway.

"What was that all about?"

"I don't know," said Geno, "but there's something very strange about all of this - the tests, the Special Studies class, and now the statue."

"Yeah, the statue... what the hell was she doing with it?"

"No idea. But I'm going to find out. And I also want to know who she was," she said, pointing at the statue.

"How?" asked Aenor, disdainfully. "You're going to use Dulce's Searcher? You don't know her name, and from Ventura's reaction, I doubt she'll tell you."

"Don't be stupid. Ventura said she was an athlete. We just have to look through books on sports, and see if her picture's there."

"Good luck. Wake me up when you're finished. I'll probably be Minister of Magic, middle-aged and filthy rich when you find anything. And now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go to the hospital wing to fix this," he said, showing his swollen hand.

***

A few days later, the five Avises were sitting in the library, reading The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts. Well, Dulce was reading, while Aenor and Half-Pint played hangman and Geno explained to Irina about Harry Potter.

"But how did he surfife?" Irina asked, amazed with what the other girl was saying.

"That's the strange thing: nobody knows. And look here." She pointed at a paragraph. "It says here that nobody has ever survived this curse before. Harry Potter is the only one who has ever managed to do it."

"Let me see," Irina said, pointing her wand at the paragraph and saying, "Cypherus!" To Geno's amazement, the letters rearranged themselves and changed shape. "I see," smiled Irina, as the paragraph returned to normal. "And they nefer saw -"

"How did you do that?" asked Geno.

"Oh, that? It's a Translating Charm. Professor Coleraine saw that my speaking is fery bad, and that I had trouble reading. So he asked Professor Sampaio to teach me."

"Oh..." Geno was about to say something, but was interrupted by Dulce's energetic exclamation.

"I found her! Geno, I found her!"

"What are you talking about?"

"She's here, in the chapter about the Asterlyth! The witch from the statue! Page 119!"

"What?" the others said at the same time, quickly opening their copies of the book to the page that had been mentioned.

And, indeed, there was a black and white photo of the witch on page 119. She was dressed in Quidditch robes, and waved at them.

"What is she doing in a book on the dark Arts?"

"Well, from what I have been reading, it looks like the Asterlyth was a parasite. It could kill a human and then occupy the body until it was emptied of energy."

"And what does that have to do with her?"

"Oh, just read!"

The last known attacks made by the Asterlyth occurred a year before the fall of the Dark Lord, in two different locations.

The first attack took place in Portugal, where a group of Aurors managed to neutralize the parasite before it could reach an unknown wizard, who seemed to be the desired target. This was a bizarre occurrence, as the Asterlyth usually attacks randomly, and only seems to take preferences when confronted with an agglomeration of both wizards and Muggles, which was not the case.

The last attack, however, occurred in Ireland, and generated a bloodshed that became known as the Cassidy Massacre. This attack assumed gigantic proportions because one of the victims, Julia Cassidy, was the Beater for the Kenmare Kestrels Quidditch team and a beloved figure in the country. The other victims were Cassidy's sister Kathleen, a member of the board of the renowned Wizarding Library in Dublin, and their Muggle relatives.

"So she was Muggle-born," Aenor exclaimed, before being nudged by Dulce to resume the reading.

Records state that the Asterlyth took control of every family member, one by one, apart from Cassidy herself, who was killed by her own sister in an attempt to save her from the possession, since it can only take place when the victim is killed by the Asterlyth itself.

"What, she killed her sister?" Half-Pint was shocked.

"The Asterlyth must really be something terrible, for someone to prefer doing such a thing," Geno said, trembling.

***

In Herbology, they continued to take care of the Fireorchids, which were now going through their fire-spitting time. The idea of being set on fire seemed to calm the Ceutas down a bit, as the lesson went quietly and calmly... that is, until Half-Pint (who had forgotten to put on his dragon-hide gloves) got too close and burned his hand. This amused Aenor, who had been mocked by his cousin because of his own hand injury, but made Professor Calixto extremely upset.

"This is bad," he kept saying, nervously, his cheerful manner gone. "This is really bad... Mr. Thessaly," he said, turning to Aenor, "can you accompany your cousin to the hospital wing? I don't want him to go alone, and since you already know the way," he said, looking at Aenor's bandaged hand.

"Er, no thanks, Professor," Aenor said, with a mock angelic smile. "The smell of that place makes me dizzy."

"I'll go, Professor," said Geno.

"Very well, Miss Aleixo. Just let me write a note to the nurse."

And so the two students left the greenhouses and went inside the castle. Geno soon realized that Professor Calixto was right in wanting someone to accompany Half-Pint, since he kept turning the wrong way and bumping into walls and closed doors.

"We had better ask the nurse to look for any signs of a concussion," she joked.

"And see if I need glasses," he replied with a laugh.

"I don't know if that will be necessary. Just walk slowly, don't rush into things without checking if they can be crossed first."

Finally, they reached the hospital wing. It was a large room, with a sweet smell of cleanliness (Aenor's a big fat liar, Geno thought) and at least a dozen four-poster beds covered with spotless white curtains.

"Do you think the nurse's here?" Half-Pint whispered to Geno; he seemed uncomfortable with all that order and cleanliness. "This looks empty."

"Let's wait a bit," she whispered back.

"What else can we do?" he then asked, showing his burned hand. "I won't leave before this stops stinging."

They decided to sit on a couple of stools located between two beds.

"Do you -" Half-Pint asked, but was quickly interrupted by a short nudge and a small "Shh!" from Geno.

"What?" he mouthed.

She then pointed to some shadows that could be seen from behind a curtain. Then, they heard voices, and instantly recognized two of them as belonging to Ventura and Coleraine.

"Tell me, have the sessions made you remember anything?" asked Coleraine. "Anything at all that can help us?"

"Please think," Ventura continued. "It is very important. You possess the missing key."

"Sorry," the third voice said, in a very loud, over-dramatic tone. "I remember some vague things about my own life... my childhood, my youth... and I also remember her - who she was, and the way she was, anyway - but I still can't remember exactly what you want. To tell the truth," he added, "I don't think I actually did what I said in my books."

"Of course you didn't!" snapped Coleraine. "It's obvious that you didn't do any of those things. Dumbledore told us that when he asked us to bring you here for treatment. But you know the people who really did. You have erased their memories and taken the glory."

"So what are you going to do when you find out who really did create the missing formula?" the third voice then asked, defiantly. "Are you going to break down the barriers to ask them?"

"We don't need to do that," Coleraine added. "You've written the entire formula in your book, so we need the location, not the person. For some reason, you gloat a lot in your book, but you forgot to mention where that specific kind of herb can be found."

"Please, Gilderoy, try to remember," Ventura pleaded. "Her life is at risk. It has been nearly thirteen years since her transformation. We have to finish the formula now, or we won't be able to save her."

"I'll try. I'll have another session with Professor Sampaio tomorrow morning. Let's see if I can remember anything useful by then."

The third figure then left the shadows and became visible to both children. It was Lockhart.

"Oh, hello," he said, as he saw the two Avises, but didn't wait for a reply. He instantly opened the door and left the room. Then Coleraine's head peered out from behind the curtain, probably checking to see who the other professor was greeting. As he returned to the shadows, (Geno could swear that she had seen him smile when he spotted them) they heard his voice once again, now whispering, "They're here."

"Who?" Ventura asked.

"Aleixo and the smaller Thessaly."

"Oh. Do you think they heard us?"

"Well, we weren't exactly discreet, were we? That idiot Lockhart, especially."

He left the shadows again and approached the two children.

"Do you need anything?"

"He... he had a small accident during our Herbology class, Professor," Geno said, shyly.

"Fireorchid," Half-Pint added, showing his hand.

"I see... Forgot your gloves, did you?" Coleraine asked, examining the boy's hand carefully. There was a slight tone of amusement in his voice, but it sounded a little bit fake to Geno, since his hazel eyes displayed the same tone of sadness and concern she had seen before. "Well, I thought my house had the reckless idiots. I guess I was wrong. Don't worry, the nurse will be here in a few moments. She had to leave to run an errand."

He then left through the same door as Lockhart. Geno looked to the place where the three adults had been, and was surprised to see that Ventura had vanished.

"Where did she go?"

"What?" Half-Pint asked, as he picked a small piece of parchment. "Hey, what's this?"

They examined it carefully. It looked like the newspaper cutting that they had seen the silver bird deliver to Coleraine on their first day of classes.

Underneath, someone had written, Use this when you are questioned about the Asterlyth. It might earn you extra marks.

As they read the news depicted in the cutting, they froze.

MUGGLE FAMILY SLAIN

Cairo, Egypt

A Muggle family, consisting of two parents, one grandparent and four children, was brutally murdered in Cairo. This event would be considered as irrelevant to the wizarding world in general, if not for the fact that the words THE ASTERLYTH IS REBORN were found written with the victims' blood.

Auror exams later revealed that one of the children, an eight-year-old boy called Said Aziz, had latent wizarding skills.

The two Avises eyed each other in amazed silence.

***

Later that night, while everybody else was sleeping, Geno opened the door of the girls' dormitories and went into the common room. Since she had an excellent night vision, she moved with ease and without needing to use her wand for light. She looked at the statue and stood there in silence, thinking about all that she had heard and read about the Asterlyth, and the dream she had on her very first night in Ingarnal...

"It's you, isn't it, Julia?" she said to the statue. "Not a simple statue, but you. And you were the one crying in my dream..." Then, she looked at the statue's feet, where a rose and a note, with a few words written in the Cyrillic alphabet, had been carefully placed. "It looks like I'm not the only one who has realized what happened." She smiled. "Well, don't worry. They're trying to get you back to normal, and I have the feeling that they'll succeed."

She walked towards the door, whispered a "Goodnight, Julia" to the statue, and returned to her bedroom.