A/N
Just a heads up, I'm switching the way I do the Kunou chapters. Going from first person to third person to make it easier to write and round them out. Otherwise, I felt like they were going to become too detached from each other and feel more like vague snippets rather than a concurrent side story.
[Line Break]
The Slytherin common room was quiet.
In fact, there was a tense atmosphere that hung over it.
It's the result of a great percentage of the House all receiving a similar letter in the span of a day. While the actual words may have been different, the contents were just about the same.
Daphne Greengrass sat in the common room quietly.
She usually didn't spend much time here because she didn't want to get wrapped up in any interhouse arguments or games. If she had free time or wanted to wind down, she would do it either in her room or outside somewhere.
She noted how many other Pureblood Households were being…cautious.
That was never a good sign to her. Her house, while old and prestigious, wasn't what it used to be. Her father often talked about how they would sometimes get pushed around by the other houses.
He usually used a lot more political talk, but Daphne understood the gist of it.
Her house wasn't particularly rich among her peers, nor were they particularly powerful.
That's not to say they weren't established or didn't have their own means. It just paled in comparison to quite a few others.
She noticed Malfoy skulking in the far corner. He was with his two idiot minions, both of whom were stuffing their mouths with various sweets.
He had been quiet as well. In particular, she knew he had been quiet for other reasons. He has barely caused any annoyances since the year started. Granted, the year was still very young, but by now, he would have already started fights with the other houses based on the previous year.
Of course, only those in the Slytherin house knew the reason.
When you get put in the hospital by a little girl, your ego tends to need time to heal.
Daphne knew that it would take some time for his misplaced sense of superiority to return and for him to become courageous enough to start trying to throw his weight around.
Until then, she appreciated the lack of annoyances from him. He liked to think he was the 'leader' of the Slytherins in their year, and he liked to make sure everyone knew it.
Funnily enough, he wasn't the only one that got the Kunou treatment.
It definitely surprised Daphne to see such a small girl toss around boys almost twice her size, but seeing was believing.
She even heard rumors that the strange girl had some magical ability that gave her some kind of super strength and that she could even punch through walls.
It was barely the beginning of the year, and yet, several Slytherin members had been sent to the hospital.
And she hadn't even gotten in trouble.
The Slytherin house was very serious about the 'Don't flaunt our dirty laundry in public' rule.
That, and none of them wanted to admit that they got beaten up by a little girl.
Even if she wasn't human.
You would think that would be enough to deter some idiots, but fools come in all different colors.
Sure, many still whispered behind her back, made derogatory remarks, and called her an animal in whispers, but none of them were brave enough to do so to her face just yet.
Daphne wasn't even sure she noticed the stares, the scowls, the glares, or the scoffs as she entered rooms. It was like Kunou existed in her own little world most of the time. Like everything here was just beneath her notice.
Normally, that would earn her some type of 'cold' nickname, yet she was equally just as happy and bubbly if someone talked to her.
It didn't matter what house you were from; if you started a conversation with her, she would easily engage.
For Daphne, it was hard to process because the girl just completely ignored the Slytherin dynamics and customs.
Her own parents had even—albeit gently—drilled into her head how to behave in the Slytherin house before she finally came to school.
Her dad always went on about how many of his closest friends and business connections came about from his time in Slytherin.
How it was important to establish those ties early on, and they will help her immensely when she's older.
Oddly, now everyone was sitting there in the Common Room waiting for the girl they disdained by virtue of her non-human features.
The letter that most of them received parroted the same thing.
Daphne was surprised that even her father sent a similar letter; she referenced it with a few of her friends. Usually, her father stays out of this sort of thing and lets the other more 'predominant' houses play their games.
The letter's topic was essentially to see if the Fox Girl was related to Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg.
According to her father, all the noble houses knew the name Schweinorg. Perhaps the darker ones really knew it, rather than it just being a name in the back of their heads.
Daphne also got a recent history lesson as to why it was important.
The reason that most her age didn't know when a name like Grindelwald was common knowledge was that, according to them, Zelretch didn't make himself known other than one major event.
In fact, a lot of people credit him with the eventual downfall of Grindelwald. Grindelwald attacked his home, and he was sent packing with a lot of his inner circle dying.
The Ministry also didn't like to talk about it because they wouldn't want to admit that there's an ancient and powerful wizard that they have no measure of just walking around.
Daphne now knew, according to her father and what he could dredge up from various ministry records, that Zelretch appeared to be well over a thousand years old, possibly older.
The Ministry automatically labeled him a 'Dark Wizard' back when he first appeared, and his name simply disappeared from the public over time.
Many of the kids in the room wanted to confirm the same thing. It would definitely change how they treated the girl if they found out she was related to such a dark wizard.
They all knew it was a delicate situation.
They had to maneuver gently, to slowly and methodically acquire the information they needed.
Daphne knew that all of them were wracking their minds on how to approach the girl and get the information in question.
Maybe a bribe?
See if they can offer a meal and broach the subject.
Or manipulation, perhaps.
Daphne thought that maybe she could outsmart the girl and get her to accidentally reveal the information she needed.
The more she could learn about this 'Zelretch' person, the more she believed her father would be satisfied, as it was rare for so many houses to scramble over such a thing.
Trying to be forceful was certainly out of the question.
She wasn't set on getting punched in the throat like so many others at this point.
"See you later, Luna!"
"Bye, Kunou!"
Daphne perked up because the common room door opened as she recognized the voice of Kunou, as well as who she was talking to. Luna Lovegood, a pureblood family, is strange and a bit loony for her tastes.
Everyone pretended not to be paying attention as she skipped into the common room.
Yet, no one made a move.
Daphne could guess that everyone was wary of each other, not wanting to give them a better opening.
She believed in herself, though; she had the grace and subtlety to win them over.
"Kunou!"
Daphne's head nearly snapped with how hard it whipped towards the voice, recognizing her best friend, Tracey Davis."
She wasn't even aware that Tracey was on a first-name basis with the girl, much less enough to call her out so openly.
"Hey, Tracey!" Kunou waved, confusing Daphne even more.
"I got a letter from my dad asking me if you're related to someone named…Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg?" She read it off the paper in the middle of the room while dozens of others stared at her incredulously.
Daphne was about to scold her, but to her surprise, Kunou answered easily.
"Oh yeah, that's my grandpa!" She smiled happily. "Well, he's Daddy's grandpa, but I call him Grandpa too."
"Oh, neat." Tracey casually replied. "How old is he exactly? My dad says he's really old and wanted to know."
"Ooh." Kunou blinked. "I don't know?" She looked thoughtful. "But Grandpa said he was taught magic by Solomon from the Bible, so he's that old at least."
"Thanks! I'll tell Dad right away."
"No problem!"
The two girls parted, each going to their own rooms, while the common room remained silent.
Daphne's brain needed to reboot.
And one thought kept blaring in his head.
Did she say that he was taught by Solomon from the Bible!?
[Line Break]
"Calm down, 'Mione, we're only going to class." Ron muttered, seeing that Hermione was so excited about it.
"Ron, you don't understand! This is Magic Theory taught by Medea herself! Can you imagine what we'll learn!?"
"It's still schoolwork." He muttered. "I can't believe I let you convince me into taking this class."
"It shouldn't be too bad, Ron. Besides, Dumbledore also suggested it." Harry pointed out. "And it won't count towards our O.W.L.s."
Ron perked up. "You're right, so it's fine if we flunk!" He immediately cheered up, and Hermione scowled.
"Ronald Weasley, if you intentionally fail this class, I will write your mother." She stared at him.
Ron gulped, knowing she wasn't kidding.
"I can't believe they opened the class up to first and second years too! And it's not only for us; apparently she redesigned the whole curriculum! We might even end up with seven years in our class." Hermione continued to speak about the class.
As they got closer to the room, they noticed they weren't the only ones. There were plenty of other kids of various ages waiting outside.
"Ugh, it's Malfoy." Ron said under his breath. "What's he doing here? He probably wants to try and get all nice with a dark witch because his family is dark."
"Ronald." Hermione slapped his shoulder. "That's our teacher."
He scowled a bit but let out a sigh. "Yeah, Mum got mad when I wrote her a letter calling her 'dark' and stuff. Even Dumbledore hired her, so she can't be that bad, right?"
Harry just nodded.
Hermione was pleased with Ron's attitude as well; she knows he can be rather stubborn about certain things.
They also noted that it wasn't merely other students either; even the professors seemed to be patiently waiting for the first class of the famous Medea to begin.
Hermione saw both Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick happily chatting at the end of the corridor while they kept an eye on the door, waiting for it to open.
And there was even Professor Lockhart signing a couple autographs not far away too.
She would maybe have gone to get one herself, but her mind was focused on the newest class more than anything.
Eventually the doors opened and everyone filed inside.
Hermione gawked slightly at the room; it was quite a bit bigger than what she expected. She assumed that the teacher had just expanded it, knowing that it's possible to do after reading A Hogwarts History.
Everyone else also looked around.
The classroom was…minimalistic.
There were plenty of blackboards and desks, but not much else.
"Good morning, everyone. Please pick a seat as you please." Medea welcomed them inside gracefully as they all picked and chose seats. "Now, first, I'll clarify the class before I know there will be questions. Magical Theory will now be split into three portions. This is the beginner's class. It does not discriminate by year, and you are allowed to take this class regardless of what year you're in. If you pass the class, you're allowed to take the intermediate class. Just as before, it is not based on year. If you pass this class during your first year, you're allowed to wait until your last year at the school to take the intermediate class. Lastly, there is the Advanced Class, which requires passing the previous two. There can be exceptions, but don't count on them, because I will have to personally sign off on you skipping."
Everyone just absently nodded along, as it wasn't that hard of a concept to grasp. And if anything, it wasn't wholly important because the class itself wasn't part of the final tests.
"Now, what will you be learning in the beginner's class?" Medea waved her hand, and the chalk behind her flew up and started writing on the board.
Many of the students went wide-eyed at how casually she displayed mastery over wandless magic.
"First, we're going to define many of the terms and concepts you'll be using during your magical studies. What is magic? Where does it come from? How does it work?"
"Um, professor…?" One student raised their hand.
"Yes, Mr….?"
"Olsen, Ma'am." He answered with a gulp, a little nervous. "But what do you mean, 'where it comes from'? Isn't it just here? That's what my dad says; he says magic just exists."
"Good question." The professor smiled. "Plenty of ignorant people think the same; I'm glad someone spoke up."
Hermione did a double take, thinking she misheard, but the tone from the professor made her think she did.
"However, that's a question that I will get to in a moment. First off, we need to define what magic is." She turned around and took hold of the chalk, writing it intentionally by herself. "Magecraft. That's the term I'm familiar with, and where I come from, that's what we call 'magic.' So, if you hear me using that term, just know it's my vernacular. What is magecraft—magic? It's simple; it's the reenactment or manifestation of anything that already exists or occurs in reality."
Everyone quietly listened; maybe someone wanted to interrupt her, but the way she spoke had them holding their tongues.
"At its core, Magecraft is the use of magical energy to produce something that either already exists or can exist. And I know you're going to ask, "What is magical energy?" She stated, releasing the piece of chalk as it continued to write without her. "That's where the initial question will come into play."
She clapped her hands, brushing off the chalk.
"Magical energy is the source of energy found naturally within all witches and wizards. Likewise, it's also found within all humans and living creatures—"
"Wait, Professor, are you saying that Muggles have magic!?" One child interrupted.
"You, raise your hand next time. Minus 5 points from…Slytherin?" She looked at his robe and nodded. "To answer your question, you're confusing the process of casting spells as the same as having magical energy. This is why it's important to define terms and concepts properly. 'Muggles,' as you call humans without magic, are incapable of casting spells. But as living creatures they possess their own innate magical energy called "Od." Od is the magical energy inside the body to differentiate it from outside."
Hermione raised her hand.
"Yes, you." Medea pointed at her.
"Hermione Granger, Ma'am. What do you mean 'outside'?"
"Another good question." Medea responded, and Hermione perked up. "This ties into the original question that I was getting to. Od is the magical energy inside your body. Outside of the body, the magical energy of the world, we call it mana. Which brings us to the original question: if Od comes from living beings, where does Mana come from? It comes from the planet itself. Magic is a concept derived from the very world that you as witches and wizards are able to tap into."
There were whispers and confusion, but Medea didn't get hung up on them.
"Now, what separates you from the supposed 'Muggles' that also have magical energy? In more plain terms, witches and wizards are creatures able to 'connect' with the foundations of the world to cast spells. Your wands are examples of this. Why do they need to resonate with you? Why is there usually a display of some sort when you wave around the 'wrong' one? It's because your wand acts as a 'link' or a 'bridge' to the world for your own magical energy to intertwine with the world's mana to actualize spells."
Hermione, like many in the class, was silent. Not because they didn't have anything to say, but because they had far too many things they wanted to say.
Even the professors seemed rather disturbingly blank as they listened to her lecture.
"Since this is the first class of the year, we won't get into too many confusing concepts; we're just covering the basics right now." Medea smiled, as if she didn't read the room at all.
"Excuse me, Medea." Professor Flitwick raised his hand. "I didn't mean to interrupt, but a question admittedly has me stumped by your explanation."
"Of course, Professor Flitwick, what can I clarify for you?"
"You defined magic as the manifestations of things that already exist or occur in reality. But are there not things that 'don't' exist naturally? For instance, the Patronus spell?"
There were a few murmurs of agreement, like many were questioning Medea's lesson so far.
"Ah, yes. If I recall correctly, it's the spell that manifests some sort of ethereal imagery through positive emotions."
"That's correct." He nodded.
"That falls into the category of 'Phantasm.' I didn't plan on branching into this part yet until about two weeks in, but I don't mind an abridged version. A phantasm is something made entirely out of images, or in simple terms, something that doesn't exist. Let me answer your question with another question: out of any example of 'creating something that doesn't exist' through magic, does any of it exist permanently?"
Flitwick blinked for a moment, thinking carefully. "No. You are correct; such things will dissipate over time."
Medea nodded. "Since they 'don't exist,' they're rejected by the world for being in conflict with this rule."
"I see, how fascinating."
To the more experienced, it made them uncharacteristically thoughtful to the point where they didn't bring up further questions.
They had never had it defined so…thoroughly before. Most of the time, magic and its concept were taught with much more whimsy or fluidness.
They've never had such a rigid and outlined description that seemed to slot into place.
"We're going to start at the very beginning when we talk about 'How does magic work?'. Can anyone tell me what the very first form of magic was?" She looked around.
No one raised their hands immediately.
After a few moments, Medea spoke again. "I'll give you a hint; it's something depicted in a vast majority of different cultures and religions. Even your 'Muggles' know of the concept, as it's so etched into the earliest foundations of society."
Hermione hesitantly raised her hand. "Is it sacrifices, Professor?"
Medea's eyes twinkled happily. "Close, very close. The correct answer is ritualistic magic. Dancing around campfires, fasting, building shrines, and, of course, sacrifices. Ten points to whatever house you are." She waved her hand.
Hermione blinked for a moment, wanting to correct her, but Medea continued.
"Now, let's begin at the dawn of time and the advent of magic with rituals." She grabbed the Chalk again, which had been parroting some of her words and definitions on the board previously, and wrote out something specific.
"The Pros and Cons of Human Sacrifice!" Medea excitedly revealed.
Hermione was fairly sure that Professor McGonagall nearly fainted.
[Line Break]
A/N
I'll try to do more Kunou chapters more often, I didn't realize how long it had been since the last one, and I do need to get her through the first year at some point because I intend for it to parallel the story a bit.
But Medea has her first real class, Kunou's family starts to get out too. I realized a flaw with the previous writing style asI mentioned in the other AN up top. It felt too fragmented and not a coherent side story, if that make sense. This way, it'll build up properly rather than things just happening without context.
If you want to read 10 chapters ahead, or 1 more Kunou chapter further on, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / astoryforone
I also have a boosty if you can't use the above under the same name