Hildegarde had woken that morning with a spring in her brutal step; every time she took a step down the stone corridors of Hogwarts, her heavy, sensible heels made an audible click, as if alerting passers-by to an impending sense of doom. Well, they wouldn't be far wrong. She was the woman that could even intimidate their grandparents. Entering the classroom, Hildegarde sternly gazed across the fresh faces of doe-eyed first years, and gave out a long sigh. The atmosphere was chillingly silent, and Hildegarde merely placed her bright violet leather handbag on the desk, wand in hand at the ready.

"Good morning to you all," she spoke in her abrupt tone, giving them a nod of introduction. "My name is Professor Austerlitz, and I have taken over from Professor Lumpkin as the teacher of the History of Magic. Now, let us get one thing clear." She took a few steps in front of her desk, leaning on it and stretching out her tiny legs a little. Giving them a smile that was more intimidating than friendly, she continued. "I am no Professor Lumpkin; I do not care how she taught, why she taught it and more importantly, the behaviour she expected from you as individuals. Things are going to be incredibly different; say goodbye to good old wishy-washy women barking on about medieval wizardry. This is my domain now, students, and you will follow my rules and my curriculum accordingly."

As soon as she finished, the chill in the air just dropped below freezing point, and Professor Austerlitz stood upright once more, her tiny height not preventing the pure menace she brought into the room.
"Now, we could go around the classroom, introduce yourself and say a few words about your interests, but frankly, I do not care. My objective within this classroom is to get the best out of you as individual students; everybody's success rate is different, and everybody has different achievement levels, but all I ask from you is your hard-work and commitment, and we should get on with very few obstacles, understood?"

Hildegarde could tell by the bitter chill in the air that she’d got off on the right foot; there was no place in Austerlitz’s class for trouble-makers, loudmouths or class clowns. Taking a deep breath, she paced in front of the blackboard for a moment before making a stop. A flick of her wand caused a flurry of white chalk letters to appear on the board, and she read them out slowly for the class to hear: "Magic in Ancient Greece... parchment and quills at the ready ladies and gentlemen."

"There has always been a focus upon early modern wizarding history, but I always feel that it's of paramount importance to view the very foundations of our society: Greece. It was the birthplace of civilisation, democracy and more importantly, a relationship between Muggle and Wizard. Yes, the world of Ancient Greece was very different to our own; the common population were acutely aware of magical forces within their world. To a Muggle today, centaurs and fantastical creatures are merely creations of mythology, but to the average Grecian, they were an integral part of reality. There was no secrecy surrounding the magical community - they were even championed by the plebiscite population. Magical aid was exchanged for worship; wizards that conjured lightning were seen as direct  children of Zeus, king of the Gods, and the majority made no attempt at dispelling these myths. Those with the magical gift were superior, which as we all know, is a rather dangerous ideology that is still employed by certain individuals today."

Hildegarde paused, allowing the students catch-up on any notes, bowing her head for a second as she continued on in her introductory lesson for the little whipper snappers. "Adoration and applause was the opium of many classical wizards - in short, they loved the worship they received, and why not?" She paused, raising both hands up in rhetoric. "Imagine ladies, that you were constantly given gifts and tokens of extreme luxury as offerings to say, cure a minor ailment or rebuild a war-torn hamlet. And gentlemen, please, imagine the countless young beauties that vowed for your affection, purely because your magic was seen as godly and powerful. I know for one, that many would be tempted by this effulgent lifestyle."

Professor Austerlitz shot the class a glance of judgement however, and the woman leant against her desk once more. "What problems do you think this gradually caused within classical societies? And are there any initial questions?"

It wasn't all that surprising that Dahlia Constance Collins was the first of the chilled and shocked first years to raise her hand when the Professor was finished with the introduction to their first lesson. Dahlia was always an attentative student who was well on her way to making herself a reputation for being a know it all. Thankfully, at least as Dahlia saw it, she didn't have a big head about it. Having a large ego was only a hindrance, modesty was the key to happy living.

When she was called upon Dahlia straightened her back and began to speak, "Well there are many different clichéd sayings that could explain what sort of societal downfalls they would face. 'With great power comes great responsibility', 'Heavy is the head that wears the crown', 'Absolute power corrupts absolutely' and so on. When a person is subjected to such behaviour, with everyone viewing them as a Deity it won't be long before they start seeing themselves as such. The dangerous part comes when these people procreate and produce children with equal or even greater power. They raise their children right from the start to believe they are worthy of worship. Not all of these children will become corrupt, mind but they are then predisposed to be arrogant and believe themselves superior to those around them to no fault of their own."

"I believe it is this mentality that still plagues society to this day. Even though it's more prevalent in pureblood families it's not restricted to them. Children are sponges and can absorb almost anything they are exposed to which is why racism and purism still exist today. Children are taught from their parents who were taught from their parents and so on and so forth."

"In a society like that it wouldn't be long before these individuals saw themselves as wholly superior possibly even overthrowing Kings and Queens, the power of the Monarchy is nothing compared to the power of the Gods. I believe it wouldn't be hard to assume that wars were waged over this very issue, with wizards trying to overthrow their society and those that once worshiped them trying to resist."

She paused long enough to gauge how her Professor was going to react to such an explanation, "Legend suggests that in ancient Sparta children that were sickly or deformed were cast aside and left to die. Do you think the same sort of thing would have happened to squibs? Nowadays Squibs are accepted members of society given free reign to either join the muggle world or find jobs in the wizarding world. I don't think it would be that hard to imagine that if a 'Demi god' so to speak produced a 'mortal' that the mortal child would be left behind, seen as useless, shameful or even unfit to have such parentage." She licked her lips and looked up at Professor Austerlitz, "What do you think Professor?"
 

From the moment Professor Austerlitz walked into the room, it was easy to see that she was a no-nonsense, confident woman. She had a similar foreboding look about her that Professor Lumpkin had had, and Eirene couldn't help but wonder if this professor hated children too. She squared her shoulders and stared at her attentively, hoping this time she'd be successful in making the History of Magic professor like her.

Eirene perked up when Professor Austerlitz mentioned introducing themselves, deflating the next second when she said she didn't care. Squirming a bit in her seat, she questioned how in the world the professor would know how to pronounce her last name if she didn't introduce herself. The professor wouldn't know anything about her good grades and family history, either! It was tragic! Perhaps she could introduce herself after the lesson was over.

But Greece! Greece! She knew about this! Her father, when he wasn't too busy, liked to tell her stories about where he'd grown up, and in the summer they often visited her grandparents there. Eirene sat up very straight and grinned, glancing around at her peers as if to say that she had this in the bag.

Eirene took notes obediently, nodding at regular intervals as if she wholeheartedly agreed with the professor. A few times Eirene paused, underlining some of Professor Austerlitz's fancy words that she admittedly did not know. "Opium... effulgent..." she murmured under her breath, promising herself that she'd look up these words later and spout them off in her everyday conversation.

The picture that the professor painted did indeed sound luxurious and fantastic. To be worshipped like gods! A little shiver of fear and excitement went through her.

What problems did it cause? Eirene wasn't sure. At the moment, it just seemed so ideal.

Because of her hesitation, Dahlia Collins answered first. Eirene frowned, immediately angry at herself and jealous of the Hufflepuff. Dahlia's early statements made some sense to Eirene, but soon she found herself becoming more and more envious of the girl and wanting to prove her wrong. Power didn't necessarily corrupt! Ancient Greece sounded so perfect!

Then Dahlia started talking about pureblood families and purism, and Eirene's frown deepened, failing to understand how that was related. Where did that come from? Why did some students insist on making fun of the purebloods? By the time Dahlia mentioned the squibs, Eirene was completely lost and confused. Worst of all, Dahlia was babbling on and on and Eirene needed a chance to impress the professor!

Eirene raised her hand and let out a little scoffing noise, ignoring the fact that Dahlia had just asked the professor a question. "I don't think it would be that bad. In a society like that you wouldn't have to hide who you were, and you'd get immediate respect. I don't think it means muggles would be treated badly, or that squibs would be cast aside," she glanced at the professor, trying to gauge her reaction. "Laws and rules would be in place to protect them. As long as people followed the rules..."

She shot a glare at the Gryffindors in the class, thinking that they'd be exactly the type who would disobey and be sent to the Greek version of Azkaban as a result.

"Eirene, that answer shows you misunderstand how highly Wizards were placed at that time. Essentially, they were considered minor gods in their own right, and as such, above the rules. That kind of power tends to corrupt. While power itself doesn't always corrupt, being hoisted on a pedestal above your fellow man tends to. Riddle had power through his magic over the others in his Muggle orphanage, then, obsessed with power, became Lord Voldemort. Even Dumbledore had a period where he was obsessed with power, along with Grindelwald, only snapping out of it when he lost his sister.

Also, squibs would be cast aside out of necessity, since it would imply that gods could produce children that were not gods. It would threaten the very basis of the belief in wizards as gods if squibs were accepted in those days." Charles said, very out-of-breath at the end after talking for so long.

Noriko was, admittedly, slightly distracted in the History of Magic class.  She had heard that there was going to be a new professor, and while she had not been particularly attached to Professor Lumpkin, all of the recent turnover in teachers was making her a little nervous.  Where were they all going?  Were they being eaten?  The thought sent a shiver down her spine.  If there was a monster here at Hogwarts that could successfully digest professors, one little first year didn't stand a chance!

She had been eyeing the new History of Magic professor, trying to gage the teacher's chances of survival should she come up against the Monster of Hogwarts, when she realized that Professor Austerlitz had asked a question.  Noriko had missed it entirely!  Horrified, she ducked her head and pretended to be taking notes, hoping that no one noticed or thought to call on her.

Her classmates, fortunately, had been listening and felt confident enough to contribute to the discussion.  Noriko cautiously raised her eyes, listening intently to the back and forth as her fellow yearmates debated.

History of Magic was usually a class that Noriko enjoyed, even if Professor Lumpkin had scared her.  It involved books and reading, and even if that reading was occasionally about scary subject matters like goblins, at least it never involved anything dangerous like fires or field trips.  She was, however, not entirely sure she was comfortable with the current subject matter.  Wasn't becoming a Squib what happened when you didn't listen to your parents?

Then one of the Gryffindor boys said the V-word.  Horrified, Noriko shot a look across the room, wondering if the new teacher had caught it.  What would she think?  And the Gryffindor had said horrible things about Dumbledore, too!  At least if this resulted in points getting taken away from Noriko's least favorite house, having another of her professors get eaten by the Monster of Hogwarts might almost be worth it.

Venora sat with her hands folded in her lap. She was trying quite hard to be a good student, especially with a new, unknown professor at hand, and one who looked every bit as intimidating as Lumpkin had been. There seemed to be an influx of crotchety, older professors at Hogwart's these days. And even if there may have been a bevy of younger, more vibrant professors floating around the school, Venora only look the classes with the former distinction, which was disturbing to her sunny, decidedly Hufflepuff disposition.

Already, after listening to Austerlitz introduce herself and dispel any myths, Venora was feeling her attention drifting. It wasn't intentional for her to be a poor student. More often than not, it just happened  if she was given too much leeway. As her new professor mentioned different achievement levels, the young Hufflepuff just nodded. And she unfolded her hands only when she was commanded to get her writing materials ready, even though she was silently protesting inside.

She hunched forward over her paper, listening to what was being said and beginning to take notes accordingly. She scratched away with purpose, chewing on her lower lip.

Grece-civilezation, democrazy, muggles and wizards
centors, mythology
no secrets
gods

 It seemed as though she would make it through the lecture fine and she wasn't concerned about writing every single note because she could always compare them with her classmates later. But it wasn't long before her attention began to wander, even as the professor stopped talking long enough to give her fellow first years an opportunity to speak. Already, Venora knew that she would much rather hear her friend, Dahlia, speak than the professor and the girl wrote down every clichéd quote and even underlined them.

She was glad that other students were talking and asking questions because Venora had no intentions of speaking up about anything. Venora was the product of two magical parents who also had muggle roots. And one of her aunts was considered to be a squib, so when Dahlia mentioned the possibility of being killed off, Venora's head snapped up. She couldn't imagine the cruelty if her beloved aunt was not around. Her aunt had more than made up for her magical deficiency in producing Venora's cousins, who had magical abilities like she did.

Venora was quick to respond to Eriene's comments by blurting out, "There wouldn't be a need for some rules to protect people if  prejudice and bias did not exist."

The Hufflepuff realized her faux pas immediately and brought her hands up to clamp over her mouth. Eyes wide, she shot a terrified look at the new professor, hoping that she wouldn't be scolded too harshly for speaking without being called upon.

Some of Mairead's earliest memories were of Oisin Murphy's old dog, Ahern.  The old lurcher was cantankerous and edgy but was one of the best hare coursers they'd had.  Whenever they pulled their wagons into a new Traveller's camp, Ahern had the same routine.  He'd trot around the whole of the grounds, marking every tree, bush and rock, lifting a lip and growling at any other male dog that even dared look in his direction.  He got in his share of scraps. 

Mairead was quickly learning some Hogwarts professors seemed to like to emulate Ahern.  This crotchety old woman's droning speech about wishy-washy this and domains and all that other rubbish seemed to be her version of marking her territory while growling at all of them.  It was boring.  And, annoying. 

The Gryffindor had found her usual place in the classroom: the row furthest from the professor's desk, the desk closest to the window.  During the first few weeks of class, a Hufflepuff had actually tried to steal it once but a quick undercut to the gut just after class had solved that problem.  Ravenclaws and Slytherins were too interested in impressing the Professor to give much contention.  Most Gryffindors had accepted she preferred the well hidden spot.  Keegan was tall enough that he could sit next to her and still have an unimpeded view out the window. 

History of Magic was simply the most boring class Mairead had ever suffered through.  Its existence was proof of the existence of Hell.  Surely, Hell was simply an eternity spent in this very classroom.  A terrifying prospect.  Hunched over her desk at the back of the class, Mairead propped her head up on her hand, watching Keegan next to her for any hint of entertainment.  "Yer hardwork and commitment!" Mairead mouthed in her fellow Gryffindor's direction, a smirk on her lips.

Only the occasional word from the lecture reached the first years ear.  Usually, they were the ones that, for some reason or another, stood out from the rest of the droning.  "Greece," Mairead mouthed absentmindedly, again in Keegan's direction.  "Ye ever put grease on a kid's bike seat?" she mouthed, grinning.  She assumed he had; it was the oldest prank in the book.  But, hilarious, nonetheless.  Of course, it was a given that all the comments directed at 'the ladies' in the room were not intended for Mairead so she promptly ignored them in their entirety.

"What do you think Professor!" Mairead mouthed in imitation of Dahlia, wagging a single finger in the air in her own half-hearted version of an energetic hand-raising, rolling her eyes to peer at all the goodie-two-shoe students who were not only paying attention but contributing to the class as a whole.  "This is ruddy useless!  I want to go fly!  The only thing Ms. Muggle's Buffet could be a god of is Ailill."  Not that Mairead's pet puffskein needed a god but the notion Noriko might be one was laughable.

Hildegarde listened intently to the young Hufflepuff, nodding every now and again, twisting her mouth in thought. She was obviously a well-informed little girl, and her enthusiasm was admirable - however, she couldn't help but feel this sort of behaviour made one unpopular. Nobody that age liked the fledgling academic, and Hildegarde could marginally feel her struggle. Looking down at the seating plan left by the former teacher, Professor Austerlitz glanced back up at the student.
"Interesting point, Miss Collins. It is true that many wizards and witches of the classical era did see themselves as descendants of the Gods; how else were they to explain their magical power? However, wars were not fought between wizard and king, but between the wizard and the commoner. Some historians believe that the myth 'The Fall of Olympus' is actually a close reference to the magical community being forced into hiding. It is said that the common population grew tired of the demanding nature of their superiors, and whilst the latter could supply every Muggle with simple products of magic, they could not live up to the expectations people had of them as demi gods. And so, the Muggles rebelled, and the concept of the Gods - collectively referred to as the Pantheon - became defunct, and the magical community were forced into secrecy much like the current system we have today."

"In regards to your question about squibs however, it is hard to give a factual answer. There is very limited historical information regarding squibs during the classical era; it was very common for wizarding folk to have relations with Muggles, and so if the offspring had no magical power than that was considered normal. They just did not possess the power of 'the Gods' so to speak. Marriage did not always involve commitment in the mythological era, and so it is extremely difficult for us as historians to form any opinion without hard evidence and fact."

Another meek Ravenclaw held up her hand in the deathly silent classroom, and Hildegarde nodded towards her, again referencing the seating plan for her name.
"Miss Antonopoulos," she replied, her voice cold and brutal as ever, pronouncing the name easily and fluently (she'd spent much of her life in Greece). "Your point does raise some issues; is it right for us, as wizarding folk, to live in secrecy? As it stands, our magical powers only really aid the magical community of Britain, but perhaps our talents should be used to help the Muggle population in regards to healthcare, transportation and diplomacy - yet this has it's setbacks as illustrated in Ancient Greece." Taking a moment of contemplation, Hildegarde stood up, pacing in front of her desk a little. "Yet, we must acknowledge that equality between all is of paramount importance. The Grecians have taught us that by exposing magical powers, we can become superior yet this is just completely undemocratic. Fairness and equality between Muggle, Muggle-born wizards, purebloods and halfbloods is the only thing that ensures our survival - just because we have the power to perform magic does not mean we deserve respect."

Hildegarde could understand the girl's reasoning, but perhaps secrecy was the best policy within magical communities. Some may deem themselves above those who could not perform magic, whilst some Muggles may attempt to harness another's magical power for self-gain, be it physical or financial.   The magical communities' policy of ultimate secrecy was something that Hildegarde wasn't too keen on, but it was the best system out of a bad bunch. There was an interruption from the back of the classroom and Hildegarde immediately straightened up, a frown on her brutally strict countenance. It involved another glance at the damned seating plan.
"Miss MacGregor? The key to good debate is patience and an open ear - interruptions are not welcome here. If you have something to say, raise your hand like everybody else." The Professor's scolding of the young girl may have seemed a little much, but she was in no mood for 'shouters-out' - not today, not any day. It irked her when people did at the Wizarding History conferences, and she always gave them a piece of her mind. Why was Hogwarts any different to that environment?


As the young Gryffindor boy spoke, Hildegarde raised her eyebrows in interest. Hailing from the house of red and gold herself, she was always impressed with a well-meaning and impassioned Gryffindor. This boy's name, according to Lumpkin's parchment, was Charles Harcroft.
"Mr Harcroft, I assume. You have hit the nail on the head," she remarked, flicking her wand slightly, causing a few chalky white words to appear on the blackboard. It was a rather simple diagram.


"Individuals like Voldemort and Grindewald, and indeed Dumbledore in his youth, succumbed to the type of pressures our powers involve; there is a reason we have been given our talents, but that does not mean we are above anybody else." Hildegarde had no fear of saying the Dark Lord's name - by omitting his true name, people only stoked the flames of this fear.

 "The wizarding Greeks lived within the temples and shrines; the only task they had was to answer the prayers of the population, and their lifestyle was without worry. However, the Muggle Rebellion and the Fall of Olympus towards the end of the classical era saw a more brutal stance by the wizarding community. Only a select few were considered children of the Gods - many of those with the seeds of magical ability were left ignored, and their power waned as nobody could provide the education to cultivate this skill. Thousands of Muggles went to war with the wizarding folk and the death toll was gargantuan. An excavation in Heraklion, Crete, unearthed nine hundred and forty three bodies, the place being a location of one of the most bloodthirsty battles wizarding history has ever seen. This was total war in Greece, and although they prevailed within the early stages, wizards were overwhelmed by the sheer number of Muggles in rebellion, and were eventually exiled from Greece, or forced into hiding. How do you think this war has affected the wizarding community of Greece today?"

Serenity had been forced to sit beside Eirene instead of between her two best friends Dahlia and Venora because she was in Ravenclaw. Her friends insisted that the Sorting Hat got her house wrong and it was inconvenient that they got to have fun in their common room whereas she was forced to be anti-social in her own because of Eirene casting such a tall shadow over her mouse-like self. She had been taking notes throughout the whole class on things she found to be interesting such as the centaurs, the myths, and the whole idea of corrupting power in ancient Greece. It was almost impossible for her to keep up in her notes since she wrote slow, but she was grateful for the disagreement that came up in class as it usually did. Why was it always Eirene that started it? The girl made such a git out of herself and it was embarrassing to have to be in the same house with her. What if people started thinking that she was like Eirene? Serenity Lee wrinkled her nose up in disgust. Certainly not; she was nothing like Eirene.

The professor complimented Dahlia and Venora on their arguments as well as Eirene. That was the only good thing about Eirene turning her nose brown with every teacher: Ravenclaw earned house points here and there for it, although this was not the case here. This new professor didn't seem very keen on giving out well-earned points. Pity. Still, the question she asked was reasonable and it was meek little Serenity Lee's turn to raise her hand. When she was called upon, she put her hand back down and hid her face further in her hair and spoke up loud enough for the class to hear.

"Er, we have the Secrecy law now. I don't think it was because of only Greece that the Ministry decided to create that law, but a number of wars like that one all over the world probably added to the problem of muggles rebelling against wizards. My dad says that 'we fear what we do not understand' and I think this applies to this: muggles are afraid of wizards because we have magic and try to kill them or, like everyone else said, wizards start thinking they're better than everyone else and try to kill muggles. The Death Eaters, for example, killed muggles for sport. I think wars like that is what brought about the Secrecy Laws and why we're forbidden to use magic in front of muggles: witch burnings and stuff."

It was as thorough of an explanation that she could give the professor and the class. When she made her point, Serenity Lee stared at the notebook on her table to try and not look at Eirene. The girl was probably mad at her for answering a question. Oh well. She could deal with it.

Venora had been prepared for a scolding from the new professor. She simply looked like one who could do that pretty well. And the affable Hufflepuff did not like being yelled at or scolded. Or, she just didn't like yelling and scolding in general, even if it was being done to someone else....including those she didn't enjoy being around particularly well.

Luckily, Professor Austerlitz's reprimand wasn't as severe and Venora breathed a sigh of relief. She slumped down a bit in her chair, hoping to fall back into obscurity. She focused her attention on her notes and when the professor began to draw a diagram on the board, the artistic first year eagerly turned her attention to copying it onto her parchment, making little embellishments here and there so that it looked pretty.

Venora didn't even care as to the significance of the diagram in the scope of the conversation but rather she liked that she got to draw. She would figure the meaning out later.

As the discussion continued, Venora made a concerted effort to listen and was doing fairly well at it. So when the professor asked about the present day wizarding community in Greece, she raised her hand in an effort to participate. This time, she waited until she was called on to speak, following what Serenity had said. "I think people would be wary of living any place where people didn't like them very much. So that war probably made it so very few witches and wizards actually want to live in Greece. Most of the notable wizarding families probably moved out to where they don't have to worry so much about that....where there might be more cooperation with muggles."