The Core of ...

There was a scream in the headmistress' bedroom.

"You slept until lunch."

"Yes. And I would have slept until dinner if I hadn't been woken up by... What did you call it?"

"A house elf."

"Exactly. He came to clean up and behaved completely unceremoniously. He just threw me out of bed to make it up. Then he opened the bathroom door with a snap of his fingers. I mean, if I had been there at that moment, he probably wouldn't have been deterred." The young headmistress was sitting cross-legged on a chair in her pajamas and greedily devouring everything that appeared on her desk. She was sitting half-turned around, as she was talking to the portrait of the pale man in black.

"Usually, when they come, there is no one in the bedrooms anymore."

"I had a hard day yesterday. It doesn't look like it's going to be any easier today."

"So you still haven't remembered anything?" the man asked cautiously.

"No."

"Only forgot more. This is strange."

"Why don't you all just tell me?"

"Because our words will tell nothing to you." She didn't counter anything. "I see you have canceled your hunger strike."

"It's a good thing the housey had the decency to feed me. Actually, I promised him to wash the dishes after myself." With her body movements, she illustrated the idea that there is clearly not enough gratuitousness in the world. "Yes, I canceled it, I decided that if I die, it will be even more difficult to return home. Or vice versa..." she straightened up and thought about it.

"Then I recommend one of the towers: quickly and for sure." the portrait responded dully.

"Good advice. But free fall... Brrr..." a big shudder ran through her whole body. "Home... where is it anyway... what is it... Besides," the woman perked up again, "I remembered that right after the letter moved me here, I took some medicine. Thus, my sacrifice yesterday was in vain." The food was finished. "So, as one of my predecessors in this position, what can you advise me? Where should I start?"

"You probably won't like my answer. From history."

"You guessed right."

***

"Let's start with working out a legend for you that we can confirm and then keep up." In the evening, after the end of the working day, the deputy paid a visit to the headmistress. "Yesterday I talked with my colleagues: they are all devoted to the school and trust its decisions, there is no need to be afraid of them. But the Board. They're not on our side. If we cannot explain to them who you are and prove that you have the right to hold this position, they will contact the Ministry. If, thanks to some incredible luck, the Ministry supports us, then they will go to the parents of the students. Many of whom, no doubt, have already been surprised by the rearrangement themselves. And if it comes out that you can't do magic... oh, the press will love it. The press..." the deputy shook her head dejectedly.

"And why, in fact, do I have the right to hold this position?"

"Because the statue let you into the office." It was an obvious fact for the old witch. "And it's been an integral part of the school since its inception, part of the ancient magic that built it... the magic of the founders... incorruptible and always standing guard over the interests of her students. I like it." She nodded approvingly at the woman. "And it is very good that this happened in the presence of the board members. Now we have unaffiliated witnesses. And they will not be able to deny that they saw everything with their own eyes, because they were seen by an employee of the Ministry. Yes, that young man was from the Ministry. Not from the education department, from another one. Which is even better, because, as a professional, he can confirm that the statue was not enchanted. Right... we are legally fully protected, that's just..."

"Why would the school do that?" the headmistress continued her thought.

"Young blood, fresh eyes?" The portrait of the pale-faced man joined the conversation.

"I don't even qualify for an internship with my experience. And with my age - I'm too old for that." She shook her head. "If I can't be useful to the school, does that mean that it's me who needs help?"

"Only you can answer this question."

"How? You said these walls would help me remember, but I'm just forgetting here. You're waiting for answers from me, but you're the only one who has the information here. I chose you, and you refuse to cooperate with me."

"We are cooperating. That's why you're sitting in the headmaster's chair, and I'm sitting across from you."

"I am sitting in the headmaster's chair because you implicitly obey the will of the school. What if that fourth one wants to destroy it with my hands?" At first, the witch's eyebrows went up. "I started studying history. I usually listen to advice." Then her hands gripped the arms of the chair and, with an agitated face, she began to get up from it.

"She hasn't changed a bit. It's worth considering." The witch glanced at the portrait and, calming down, sank back down. "Only we know about her shortcomings. And we can present to the Board only her advantages." The woman depicted something like 'Do I have such?' on her face. "For example, the origin."

"Her origin? The advantage?!"

"After all, there is another side. The name's been named - there's no turning back. All that remains for us is to extract from it what suits us. The family is ancient, with a capital letter, and famous for its magic..."

"Not just magic. There is no less threat here..."

"But we will focus not on this one - on other branches that no one knows about, but there is someone to tell. The old man is still alive; I am sure he will help us."

"I didn't tell him." It was obvious that the old woman's heart ached. "After so many years."

"And you won't have to. They won't come to him for her. And even if her name comes up in a conversation, it won't lead to anything. There is no evidence and there has never been, only rumors. And one indisputable fact."

"But the full namesake, with the same year of birth..."

"More likely than what we have, you have to agree. Let them search. If they need to. I hope they find nothing."

"Well. Then the last question still remains. What for?"

Everyone was silent for a while.

"We need something very simple and banal. Something they wouldn't be interested in. Maybe it's really an internship? Personnel training under the watchful supervision of a professional? Or should we interest them in something else, a situation rather than a person? Well, I do not know, let's say you ran into a mountain giant while walking. He sneezed at you and, not noticing, wandered on, and you started coughing up stones, which, falling to the ground, turned into little giants. I happened to be nearby, calmed the kids down and took them to their parents. And voila. There's a new school year coming up, you're advised to reduce your workload, and I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. Hmm... I wonder who is the parent in this case?..." The witch put her hand to her chest and swallowed. "I'm not suggesting exactly that. I just described the scheme."

"It would have been in the 'Curiosity of the Year' column."

"You know, I'm already at the age when I don't need the snot of a mountain giant to suddenly feel sick."

Despite the late hour, an owl flew in through the window. Without sitting down, it threw the letter into the hands of the headmistress and, shouting, flew away.

"It's from the Board. They'll be here tomorrow."

It turned out that the Board didn't need the hype either: they couldn't accuse the professors of arbitrariness, but they didn't want to inform the public that the school might disregard their opinion, and even more so, force them to go along with it. They settled on the option of an internship. The press and parents were told that the experiment had been approved by the Board and was being conducted under their supervision. 'I'm here to learn, not to change.' One less problem.

"Can I have an advance on my pay?"

***

Bright spots of light lay on gray-brown stones of the school corridor, abundantly coming through large windows piercing one of its walls, and painted them golden. Outside the windows, the dense forest was still a green lake. Nevertheless, the sky was already a deep blue color, which indicated that autumn had come into its own. There was no one in the corridor except for a lone figure walking along it. It exited one of the castle towers and now walked leisurely, studying the ceiling, then looking out of the windows, then examining certain stones on the floor. It was wearing a black dress, which, on the one hand, with a loose heavy skirt falling below its knees and a dense fabric covering its shoulders and chest, tried to be non-provocative, and on the other, tightening its torso with a corset, revealed the presence of shapes. The low heel of black ankle boots gave femininity to the movements of these forms. For a long time, only the thud of those heels disturbed the quiet of the deserted school hours. Suddenly, there was the sound of footsteps and the rustle of robes behind - two guys ran out of the adjacent corridor. They stopped when they noticed the potential danger.

"Check out the gait." One whispered to the other, nudging and nodding towards the figure continuing its way as if nothing had happened. "It's not like striding in school shoes."

"Who's that? What is she doing here at this time?"

"I think the same as us."

"No. Look, she's not wearing a uniform. She's not a student. Who is it? They have the ghost of a woman, don't they? Could it be her?"

"Yeah, appeared in the flesh. Don't make me laugh. Besides, she wears gray. No, she's one of us, she's just encrypting herself. And apparently, it's not the first time she's doing this - she didn't even turn around." The guy whistled defiantly. "Hey!" Without waiting for a response the second time, he ran to catch up with the stranger.

"Where are you going? Have you forgotten why we came here?" his companion shouted in a whisper, but eventually followed him.

Hearing the approaching clink of boots on the floor, the figure finally stopped. She did not turn to face her pursuers, preferring to wait for them to circumvent her and turn around on their own.

"The headmistress?"

"Oh, devil! We're finished!"

"Don't worry, you have time to suffer a little more." Then she addressed the instigator, whose face, unlike his accomplice, was not afraid, but rather shocked. "I was definitely flattered by your attention but it was a bit rude for my taste." The student was silent and did not take his eyes off her face. She ran her eyes over the uniforms to find the insignias of the lads. "You've crawled high. Did you come for bird watching? Aren't your lessons in full swing?"

"We have a window now!" the second one blurted out, "We're not skipping!" and after thinking about it, he added "We were going to the library!"

"It's immediately obvious that you've never been there." The first one came to his senses and glanced at his friend with displeasure, "At least don't embarrass me."

"The path depends not only on the destination, but also on the starting point." the headmistress supported him, "That's where I'm going, for example. Shall I take you?" she looked at the other one and grinned, "Or will you find the way yourselves when you finish your business here?"

"Of course we will, don't bother," he cheered up, "thank you, Miss Greenwood!"

"We're coming with you, Miss."

"What?"

"Let's go then." Actually, that's not what 'Miss' was counting on, but there was nothing else to do, so she slipped between the guys and walked down the corridor a little faster.

"Why did you say that?" one of the lads whispered again, "We're not done here yet."

"I'm in love."

"Tobias, you're always in love. That's why we're here."

"This is different." The student broke through his stupor and followed the headmistress.

"Toby! Damn," the other one started after him.

"So Tobias and..."

"Robert."

"Thanks, buddy," was said through gritted teeth.

"Well. At the moment, I'm unable to incriminate you with a lie - I haven't learned all the schedules yet. But I will. And then, if I catch you during your truancy, you won't get off so easily."

"That's very generous of you, Miss."

The guys were walking a little behind, and the speaker caught a puzzled look from his friend. They traveled in silence most of the time. Only, sometimes joking, sometimes sardonic, the comments of the portraits they passed by caused short dialogues. Once in the library, the headmistress thanked the guys for the company and, saying "Now everyone is on their own," went to the woman at the book registration counter.

"Good afternoon. Can you tell me where I can find information about the Ancients?"

"Of course, headmistress. In the historical book department." There was a pause.

"Is that all you can do to help me?"

"The department is located there," the librarian said with a smile and pointed towards the cabinets, around which clouds of dust were slowly rolling in the air. The headmistress' look changed from disappointed to skeptical, but she didn't ask anymore questions and went to the shelves. "Books like to be found on their own, so they reveal more." she heard a good-natured whisper behind her.

"I couldn't find anything about the Ancients." The woman faced the portraits on the wall once again. Now she sat down directly on the desk and, resting her palms on the edge of the tabletop to relieve her tired back, dangled her equally tired legs. "Why? You didn't just say 'with a capital letter' about them. And the librarian wasn't at all surprised by my question; she was sure that I would find what I was looking for. But I've been poking around for hours and to no avail."

"That's really strange. Maybe that's not what you need right now?" the same portrait with the black eyes answered her.

"The school probably does know what I need. Why are you all so sure that there is someone or something who knows everything and leads you in the right direction?" The portrait pondered the unexpected rebuke. It seemed to the woman that out of the corner of her eye she saw movement in another portrait. "Most likely, it seemed. Never mind, it was a rhetorical question. To be honest, I didn't regret the time I spent, especially since it mysteriously cost me only ten minutes. Because it was... magically." She immersed herself in a fascinating reminiscence. A passage of tall cabinets densely packed with books stretched so far that it was easy to trust that its other end was located somewhere in the depths of centuries. She went forward along that corridor, backward in time. The further she got, the more foggy the path became, the more laborious was the process of making out the words on the plates. Although, there was no necessity for them - the shelves spoke for themselves, showing visions that formed from accumulated dust and then disintegrated back into it. Top hats on the heads of men were replaced by powdered wigs, conservative black gowns under the mantles of women blossomed with colourful buds, a waltz sounded from here, a military march from there, a frigate raced from one shelf on spread sails, a golden carriage rolled out heavily from another. And then: a thud of hooves and a clang of iron armour; conversation in a dozen various languages; a ringing of coins and a pipe playing oriental motifs. She stopped to listen. The woman came out of a romantic state. "Well, to some extent one might say that I've found something. Somewhere deep inside, on one of the shelves, on top of the other books, there was one called 'The Chosen People: Exoduses.' Overall, it didn't look much different from many of the old books in the library: dense brown cover made of thick leather of good quality, braided patterns of gold embossed in the corners and in the centre; inside, it was also richly decorated. I don't even know what made me pick up this one. It probably seemed to me that no one had done this before." The woman became thoughtful. "Maybe only once, judging by where I found it. I felt pity for the author. According to the content, the folio described the four-thousand-year biography of some families of the Middle Eastern wizards: from wandering in the ancestral lands to settling in all corners of the world up to America. Almost to the present day. Oddly enough, the year of publication is 1144. It is the death year of the author - November 11, 1144. The chronicle part of the book ended at the same time. Only the content and family trees continued. They occupied nearly half of the volume. There were only twelve of them, but their crowns have grown and intertwined so much that it was quite conceivable to spend years untangling them. And yes, I found my last name among them towards the end. But not my name. As I scrolled on, it leapt to the eye that the branches of the trees were thinning. Sluggishly at first, then faster and faster. It wasn't due to early deaths, but rather to a low birth rate. By the beginning of the 19th century, there were only three thin branches left, judging by the places of births and deaths, one somewhere in North America and two here. End of 19th - just two. The American one was terminated in the sixties of the 20th. The remaining one seemed odd, and, looking closer, I understood why - for the past hundred years, they had been marrying only among themselves. The last leaf was a woman who died... hmm... around the time I was supposed to be born. Actually, everyone who was still alive died at that time; there were about twenty of them. Some kind of tragedy has befallen the families. However, there weren't even any young people among the dead, let alone babies. So... that doesn't mean anything when you face the facts."

"Indeed... What about the book you started?"

"Oh, it's unbearably boring, although the beginning was encouraging."

"In every book you can find something interesting for yourself."

"Why, if I found an interesting book for myself? 'Theory'. And I can't even handle the contents of that one. Maybe I would've had a better chance in class?"

"I doubt it very much."

"You think so? Well, I considered going to classes anyway: different disciplines, different years, you know, to get to know the educational process, to get to know professors, students..."

"Magic..."

"Maybe it will help me remember..."

"Or completely forget..."

"In any case," the woman didn't give up, "I need to do something, work somehow, or at least create an appearance."

"Then you should first discuss this with each professor separately, in order to avoid misunderstandings."