Time to Bring the Dark Arts

"um, I agree with Annie," Lina finally said in her usual soft voice. "The Unforgivable Curses, as well as most charms and spells, require emotion in order to work, meaning that the caster must have some sort of, um..." she hesitated for a few seconds trying to think of the word, "umm, drive," she questioned before continuing, "in order for it to work."

She didn't like to think of such horrible thoughts, but she wanted to have some clarification, "um, but I'd read that there were other ways for...the curse not to work." Lina looked up to the Professor and finally asked, "so, um, is that true?"

Helena answered. "Very good, students." She was calm and in control, as if she'd done nothing out of the ordinary. "Yes... Lina, right? There are ways for the curse not to work." Helena moved to her left to get out of direct line of Annie's sight, since the girl was burning holes through her. "Most of the time the spell refuses to work due to an inability on the part of the castor to..." She wanted to find a lesser word as an example, but knew there wasn't one. "Murder another person."

She looked around the room, everyone's eyes boring into her. Helena really was in her element now, and she was ready to charge ahead, fate be damned. "This curse in particular requires you to get your hands dirty. You need to want to kill someone. That's been pointed out time and again--and, believe me, killing another person is not an easy thing." She gave about as grave a look as she had, which was very grave. "It isn't. And anyone who tells you it is is either a liar or a fracking psychopath."

Helena turned back to Annie to answer her question. "And that last part falls back into intent. But it's really more than that, because how often have you felt so angry--" She looked right at Annie now, eye to eye, "you felt like you wanted to kill them, Annie? Hum?" She shot a glance over to the stored wands, and then back. "Enough that you think you could make this curse work?"

Annie glared at their professor. "The anger you're talking about isn't something I want," she looked over at Kerry and then down at her hands, which were clenched into fists on top of her desk. She focused on relaxing them before she continued. "But I've felt it more deeply than you can imagine," she finished, looking back up at Professor Lovecraft.

"Thank you for taking our wands..." She smirked and sat back, placing her hands lightly in her lap.

I've seen that look before, Helena thought. And it didn't always come from across a table. But if she's not happy now....

"Yes, I'm sure you're happy about that," she said. "But lets revisit something you said: 'If the casting wizard is not sufficiently competent--'." Nodding slowly she told the class, "Let's look at that aspect, because, truthfully, that is the most important component of any spell--Dark Arts or not."

Turning her back to the class Helena proceed to the front where the other woman and the cage waited. Helena pulled the cover off the cage reviling a large horned owl inside. There seemed something wrong with the owl, however: its head drooped slightly, the eyes were half opened, and there was a singular lack of shine to the feathers.

“This is Oliver,” Helena said as she handed the cover to the women. Turning to the class, she said, “Oliver has been a school owl for many years, and has been treated with kindness and respect throughout his life here. Professor Mossman tell me, however, that Oliver has been ill for a few weeks, and despite her tender nurturing, she has determined he is dying.

“He’s not in pain yet, but she figures he’s only a few more weeks to live, and it won’t be long before his illness leads him to suffering.” She turned to the class. “No one wants an animal to suffer. It isn’t right, and most of all—it isn’t fair to the creature.”

She walked over to Professor Mossman, spoke softly to her, and then appeared to say something to the owl before turning back to the class. “When a creature is suffering—any creature—the best course of action is to alleviate that suffering.” Helena stopped and half-turned towards the cage. She gave Mossman a slight wave with her wand, and the woman moved three steps away from the cage.

Helena looked at the owl for a moment, then muttered, “Right.” In a very quick motioned she raised her right arm and, snapping her hand forward, aimed her wand at Oliver. “Avada kedavra!” she exclaimed, this time with a bit more energy than what she’d used moments before on Kerry.

The green bolt shot from the wand, striking the owl. Oliver fell backwards off his perch; his still, dead body made a very loud thunk! in the silent classroom when it stuck the bottom of the cage.

“So, what was the intent behind putting Oliver out of his misery?” Helena asked. “It surely wasn’t murder—why murder a helpless animal? If anything I was putting him down, alleviating his agony.

“And why use a Killing Curse? There are at least a half-dozen charms I could use that would have brought his life to an end. Isn’t the Killing Curse only for those times when one wants to murder another person?” She walked slowly towards the front row. “Is the intent used to euthanize a sick animal the same that one would use to kill a human?” Never breaking stride Helena whipped her wand hand out again, exclaimed “Avada kedavra!” and hit Kerry a second time—

This time Kerry didn’t sit and glow. The moment he was enveloped in green light he screamed, and loudly—a high pitched, tortured sound. This wasn't like touching a live wire in a light switch--it was like being electrocuted. And it hurt.

He shook in his seat for 2 or 3 seconds then stopped and leaned back. His body seemed to buzz all over; if he had been thinking right he might have thought it a most unusual sensation . . ..

Finally, when it was past, Kerry slowly leaned forward and, propping himself on his desk, loudly hissed, “Shit!”

As Kerry shook-—and ignoring the gasp from Professor Mossman-—Helena asked loudly, “So, why is Kerry still alive? I can kill an owl, but not him? What am I doing wrong?”

And then she walked quickly over to her potions cabinet, returning to Kerry's desk with a bottle of something dark and green--

Annie watched in stunned silence as Lovecraft sent the curse into the owl and it yielded, plopping over in its cage with a horrifying thud.

Before she could comprehend what was happening, Kerry’s screams ripped through her—tearing through her head and etching themselves forever on her soul. She held her hands tightly over her ears and squeezed her eyes shut, as the torture seemed to go on forever.

When it was over, Annie slumped in her seat. She was sweating; her heart racing. This was far too much for her to endure, and she was positive Kerry was beginning to clue in to the situation he was in as class guinea pig. She heard the professor mumble something and opened her eyes to see her bringing a potion—to Kerry.

“NO MORE!” she yelled. “Please, Professor…” Annie looked up at the woman she, just a few minutes before, wanted nothing more than to learn from. “Please.”

Helena gave Kerry a measures of the potion. "Drink this," she said softly, her voice almost motherly, "you'll feel better." Not glancing toward Annie she said, "Of course, Annie," then looked up and spoke to the class. "There'll be no more today."

"The horror show is over, kids," she said, stopping up the potion and placing it in her jacket pocket. "Crazy 'ol Professor Lovecraft has finished this part of her lesson." She leaned over and said something to Kerry. He nodded, then picked up his backpack and got slowly to his feet.

As he walked around to the front of his desk, Helena said, "I'll be back in but a moment. I'm sure Professor Mossman will watch over you for the few minutes I'll be away." With Kerry standing in front of her, Helena placed her hands on his shoulders--

Kerry was still shaking off the feeling of disorientation when Helena gave him a potion and told him to drink it. While he wasn't the greatest tasting thing in the world, it quashed the feeling of . . . well, he felt like he'd been run over, to be honest.

He wasn't paying much attention to what was going on. He head hurt and his insides felt a little like he'd just gone another round with the Phoenix. Then Helena leaned over and whispered, "I'm taking you to the hospital," and asked him to stand up and join her. He grab his pack and walked over to Helena; he could move, but he felt like he'd been shoveling about three times as much dragon dung as he had yesterday.

As Helena laid her hands upon him he saw Annie--oh, man, she looks like she's gonna die. Here he was about to go off to the hospital--again!--and Annie was gonna be here all worried--

He shrugged out of the professor's hand. "One second, Professor," he said, digging into his backpack. He found the draught and put it in front of Annie. "You need this," he said. "Trust me; it'll help." He then moved back to Helena, and even though he felt very, very bad, he couldn't help but smile. "See ya, Sweetie," he said at the last second, right before they apparited, her face was the last thing he saw before everything swirled around them . . ..

Ellen's eyes buldged.

This is the best class ever! Why don't they teach this at Hogwarts? I we did was watch a rat being killed. She got to kill a student?!?! Err...not really. But, come on! BEST SHOW OF THE NIGHT!!!

She looked over at Annie.

But look at that chick. Head over heels, for sure.

She glanced back at where the teacher was.

Will she be back? Will she teach us more?

She longed for answers.

Annie watched with a wary eye as the professor leaned over and whispered to Kerry. He looked awful as he stood and followed her—and then he looked at her. She tried to smile at him but the strain of the class weighed heavy.

She was preparing herself for his departure, imagining Lovecraft chaining him up in the dungeons and battering his frame with more curses, when he left the professor and bee-lined it to her. She watched as he rooted around in his bag for something and then set a petite sapphire glass bottle on her desk.

Annie turned up her face to his as he spoke, hardly believing what she was hearing. The nurse…, she thought, and then he was back by Helena’s side—saying goodbye.

After he’d gone, the class was silent. Annie guessed everyone was just as stunned as she was, though her emotions were strained to their breaking point. She pulled the small cork from the bottle, and allowed the potion to do its work.

Ellen smirked. "So what'd everyone think of that? Good thing he didn't die, though. It would be just aweful to have a murdering teacher."

Or interesting? Oh...crap.

Annie felt the potion working. When the callous remarks flew from the mouth of the new girl, the calming draught was the only thing keeping Annie in her seat—and away from her wand.

“I’ll bet you enjoyed that, Ellen,” she said. “It’s really too bad you only got to blow up a lock today…”

Oh, hell. That chick is a load of crap. Why bother me? I'm fine with myself.

"Yah, too bad that was the only thing, Krum."

Give her a good shot of anger. See how she feels. That twit!

Annie smiled at Ellen. “I’m surprised you managed to ever find a wand that wanted you, Caldwell.” She giggled at the silly girl, remembering how she was yelling at the door in charms—begging for something to happen.

“And I agree,” she said. “It’s too bad you weren’t closer when that lock blew up.” Annie glanced over at Raven and grinned. “I’m sure Raven will concur.”

Raven just sat in class trying not to get on Lovecraft's bad side as she continued with her lesson. She was shocked when Lovecraft hit Kerry with the Killing Curse, but relaxed when he was ok...Lovecraft really is something.

Raven laughed at what Annie was implying. She remembered how good it felt to beat the living daylights out of the girl right before class and how she was able to get away with it.

After a couple of minutes--as she indicated--Helena apparated into the room. "Class, class!" she called out, grabbing everyone's attention. "Calm down, please."

She turned to Isis. "Thank you, Professor Mossman." She walked over to the woman, said something private to her, then louder: "Please give Oliver the internment he deserves." She regarded the cage for a moment then said, "Say something for me as well."

As Professor Mossman gathered up her things Helena turned back to the class. "So, what was the purpose for all that? Any ideas--beyond the teacher is a lunatic?"

Ellen raised her hand. "To teach us the reason why most wizards who dabble in the Dark Arts are Dark Wizards. They have to mean the spell. They have to want the pain."

Simple enough, right? But what if you are in self-defense, huh? I guess it doesn't count.

Helena regarded the girl for a moment, then answered in a soft, steady tone. "Do you really believe it was my intention to hurt Kerry? Do you actually believe I enjoyed inflicting pain upon another person--in particular a student?" Helena snorted loudly. "Do you believe that every dark witch and wizard out there, every person who has ever shown a scintilla of interest in the Dark Arts does so because they want to bring pain and death?"

She put her wand back in her jacket and returned the potion to it's proper location. "What I demonstrated is that the Dark Arts, like every other form of magic--be it potions or charms or transfiguration--is not written in stone. It can be controlled; it can be... tempered. It can be bent to the will of the castor, and not always the other way around."

She cast a dark gaze around the room. "One does not need allow themselves to become a slave to the nature of the Dark Arts." She nodded slowly, boring her eyes into each student. "One can know how to us each spell, each curse, each potion... and make it work for them--and not for the... seduction of its power."

Isobella was heavily annoyed. "What I meant was, you did not mean the spell. Thus, it did not work properly." After saying what she did, and clearing away the misunderstood, she felt much better. Lies were her true hated enemy, though she lived with them too much.

After several blinks Helena replied, "Ellen, that spell worked exactly the way I wanted it to work." Helena paced back and forth across the front row as well as she could. "Let me explain: any maniac with the willingness to murder can use the Killing Curse as people expected to be used." She pretend to point a wand. "You curse: a person dies." She slapper her hands against her leather duster. "Simple. Even idiot Death Eaters can do that.

"What I did, however..." Her voice dropped slightly as she spoke. "I pulled back. I controlled the curse. And I produced just the effect I wanted each of the three times I used it."

Helena walked up to the front row and leaned against the desk where Kerry had sat. "Any stupid bastard can kill once they figure out how. But a true... Dark Witch... oh, my: she can take that curse and bend it and mold it and..." Helena's grin was not the sort one would take as full of "mirth". "If I had wanted to use that against someone I truly despised, I could flick away a bit of their life each time, gram by gram... and it could take days to kill them." She laughed dryly. "Not the worse of the curses? You have no idea, love. None at all."

Ellen shook her head. "I will accept we have different opinions on this. Death, to me, isn't the worst possible."

Raven sat back as Lovecraft was being sarcastic to Ellen, that girl really is somethin, she thought. She wasn't going to say anything that would get on her bad side after she let her go with a warning, and a helpful tip. I'm gonna love this class from now on.

Oh, we have a spooky one here, Helena thought. Won't be the last time they come to dip into the Dark Arts. "Regardless of the correctness of my opinion," Helena said, "the truth remains that one can control Dark Arts magic and..." She indicated herself. "Not turn out completely bad.

"The objective of this class is to show you as much about the Dark Arts as possible, at a 1st Year level. I won't lie--" She shot another of her patented stares at everyone. "You will see things you won't like. You'll learn things that you'll wish you hadn't. And, in time..." She turned towards the class and stared off into the distance. "You're going to do things you will wish you couldn't.

"Everything you will learn in this class will remain in this class." The tone shifted into one a bit more menacing. "When I first began to learn this magic, it wasn't sanctioned at our school. We had to sneaked into the dungeons and practice. But we learned--'cause I had a damn good teacher.

"Here, the Headmistress, like the ones before her, continues to allow a class that offers a true understanding of the Dark Arts. And I truly do believe they should be taught as is, possible evil intentions and all. As someone told me not long again--" Helena glanced over to Kerry's desk, "you learn the actual magic, then you can... 'reverse engineer' it and build up a better defense." She folded her hands across her lower abdomen. "I believed that years ago. I still do believe it."

She glanced around the room and saw that people, while still attentive, had relaxed. "Any questions, children?"

When no one spoke, Helena decided there was enough excitement for one day and moved to the finale. "First, I want to make this abundantly clear: everything we do in this class stays in this class. Everything pertaining to the Dark Arts will be worked on here, in the Manor--either in the house or the dungeon. But only here! No where else.

"I find out anyone is doing anything with Dark Arts outside this classroom, I will come, take your wand, break it and put both pieces up whatever orifice is available." He glowered at the students. "Don't test me on this. You step out of line, I will fuck you up."

Stepping up to her desk, Helena said, "Second: assignment. I want a paper from you. Not much, just 300 words minimum. I want to know the following: 1. What do you expect to learn in this class? 2. Why do you think a knowledge of the Dark Arts will benefit you? And, 3..." Helena smiled once more, and she knew by now people were going to learn this smile wasn't going to be good, "What is your true interest in the Dark Arts?

"And when I mean 300 words, I mean in the body of your paper. That doesn't mean "your name", "your cover" and all that bullshit counts as part of the 300. 300 words covering those three questions." She almost giggled, but knew that would frighten people. "Minimum."

She walked over towards Annie. "Papers delivered to the box outside this room before your Dueling class tomorrow, which means, by 9 AM I will not accept any work--" Again the smile. "And then we'll see what to do about that."

Leaning over Annie's desk she said, "Come on. I know someone will want to see you." She stood while Annie gathered her things. "Class is over... for today at least."