On Thursday afternoon, during the Gryffindor fourth-years' first Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson, Mad-Eye Moody decided to put on quite a show.
He launched straight into teaching the three Unforgivable Curses.
The wizarding world had always been rather conservative. For students and most adult wizards alike, the Unforgivable Curses were practically taboo subjects. It wasn't simply a matter of being condemned or punished by the Ministry of Magic. These three spells had been so thoroughly demonized that people instinctively avoided discussing them.
Hogwarts professors never discussed the Unforgivable Curses in public, either, presumably because they believed doing so might harm their students' psychological well-being.
However, information about the curses had always been available in the library. Students who read widely could easily learn about them. The school's general attitude was neither to advocate nor encourage their study, but not to explicitly oppose it, either.
Moody's blunt, straightforward teaching style swept away these old-fashioned conventions. He had no qualms about breaking unwritten rules and revealing the effects of the three sinister curses directly to his students.
"Which of you can tell me what spells are known as the Unforgivable Curses?"
A few hesitant hands rose around the classroom.
Harry didn't raise his hand because he already knew how to cast all three curses, and admitting that knowledge made him feel rather guilty.
Ron didn't raise his hand, either. He was keeping Harry's secret.
Neville and Hermione, however, both volunteered.
Moody's normal eye darted toward Hermione, revealing a peculiar emotion. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly before he called on a Ravenclaw student instead.
"I know there's the Imperius Curse."
"Correct."
Moody nodded without awarding any house points. He coldly instructed the student to sit down, then retrieved a birdcage from a drawer in his desk.
Inside were two hideous Cornish pixies.
These creatures were extraordinarily noisy, which explained why several students had been whispering about strange sounds ever since the lesson began.
Moody drew his wand and pointed it at one of the pixies.
"Imperio!"
A flash of light struck the creature's blue-gray head. The little menace, previously as energetic as a firecracker, instantly became as quiet and obedient as a puppet on strings.
Moody's scarred face twisted into a strange smile.
He gently waved his wand like an orchestra conductor flicking his baton, and the pixie began dancing gracefully inside the cage, spinning on its toes like a ballerina.
To ensure everyone could see clearly, Moody deliberately moved the cage to the front row.
Quite a few students burst out laughing.
Before they could recover, however, Moody gave his wand a violent flick.
The pixie under the Imperius Curse let out a furious shriek and lunged at its companion, attacking it with reckless ferocity.
"AHHH!"
The students screamed in horror.
They had just watched one pixie tear the other's ear off.
Moody let out a cold, sinister chuckle.
"Still think it's funny? Imagine if you were the ones under this curse. I could make you swallow poison and kill yourselves. I could make you strangle yourselves with your own hands."
A deathly chill seemed to sweep through the classroom.
"Back in the day, when Voldemort was still active, countless witches and wizards fell under the control of this curse. The Ministry of Magic couldn't tell who had been forced to commit evil acts and who had willingly become the Dark Lord's accomplices. Of course, some people who really were Death Eaters used that very excuse to escape the Ministry's judgment. You'd better watch yourselves. Voldemort's shadow has never truly disappeared."
Ron leaned toward Harry and whispered, "I reckon even if Voldemort came back, he wouldn't stand a chance against Dumbledore. Any of the Tower of Tomes' disciples could beat him without breaking a sweat."
Harry nodded.
"I'm more concerned about the Death Eaters who've gone into hiding. Old Malfoy's definitely one of them."
Moody then proceeded to introduce the most sinister of the Unforgivable Curses, the infamous Killing Curse, Avada Kedavra.
A brilliant blue flash erupted from his wand and struck one of the pixies.
The creature's life was extinguished instantly, and it collapsed inside the cage like a crumpled scrap of paper.
The students were thoroughly frightened, exchanging uneasy glances.
Had Professor Moody seriously just killed a pixie?
Wasn't he afraid the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures would come after him?
Granted, pixies had no human rights and were generally obnoxious little pests, but that didn't mean they deserved to be killed so casually.
Ron was still whispering his running commentary.
"Harry, I remember the light being green when you used that spell."
Yes, green.
Exactly the same color as Voldemort's Killing Curse.
Hermione discreetly kicked him beneath the desk.
"Idiot! What are you saying?!"
"Oh, right. Sorry."
Ron guiltily glanced around, relieved to discover that nobody had been eavesdropping on their conversation.
Professor Moody stared at the dead pixie and sighed.
"The Killing Curse, Avada Kedavra. There is no counter-curse. No way to block it. Since this spell was invented, only one person has ever survived it."
As he spoke, he glanced at Harry.
Naturally, everyone else's attention immediately shifted toward the Boy Who Lived as well.
Harry remained expressionless.
He didn't enjoy revisiting the traumatic memories of his childhood. Lily and James had already been resurrected, and all he wanted now was to put those painful experiences behind him.
"Now, the last curse. Who knows what it is?"
Neville raised his hand again.
"Go ahead."
"It's... the Cruciatus Curse."
"You're Longbottom, aren't you?"
It was difficult to tell whether Moody's voice had grown gentler or colder.
"You certainly know more about that curse than most."
Neville's expression immediately darkened.
He raised a hand to his forehead, looking utterly miserable.
"It's all right. Things will get better," Hermione hurriedly reassured him. "Haven't your mum and dad been doing a little better lately?"
Neville's parents had been Aurors working for the Ministry of Magic. Death Eaters had tortured them with the Cruciatus Curse until they lost their sanity.
The boy had never given up searching for a way to save them.
Among the countless books housed in the Tower of Tomes, solutions to their condition did indeed exist. Unfortunately, Neville's current knowledge and abilities were still insufficient to put those methods into practice.
That had become his primary motivation for studying so diligently.
Whatever the case, Moody's remark had left Neville's three friends somewhat displeased with their new professor.
After class, the four of them happened to discuss Moody again.
Ron suddenly said, "Harry, remember what happened on the first day of term? My dad suddenly received a letter from the Ministry asking him to help Mad-Eye get out of trouble over some charges."
"I remember. Apparently, someone broke into his house, and Moody's reaction caused his dustbins to explode, frightening a few Muggles."
"That Mad-Eye really is completely bonkers."
Harry nodded.
He kept his thoughts to himself.
For some inexplicable reason, Mad-Eye Moody gave him a strange sense of familiarity.
"Neville, I'm sure Mr. Skyl could cure your mum and dad. Why don't you ask him for help?" Ron asked, abruptly changing the subject.
Neville shook his head.
"I don't want to trouble Mr. Skyl. This is something I can manage on my own."
"Well, if you ever need a hand, just say the word. We're always here for you."
That night, the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom was completely silent.
The only source of light in the darkness was a cluster of magical flames, above which a cauldron bubbled steadily.
A shadowy figure stood patiently before the cauldron, waiting until the potion had finished brewing.
Once it was ready, the figure removed the cauldron from the fire, allowed its contents to cool, and poured the finished potion into a large glass jar.
"Long time no see, Professor."
Another person's voice suddenly broke the silence.
"WHO'S THERE?!"
The classroom door silently swung open.
Skyl stepped inside and greeted the man masquerading as Moody.
"Did I scare you?"
"Oh, it's you."
Snape relaxed.
//Check out my P@tre0n for 30 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810.