Babbling knew perfectly well that whatever small number of students remained would likely halve again by fourth year, but there was nothing she could do about it. Some knowledge simply wasn't suited for mass consumption.
It was, in fact, a large part of why so few wizards ever reached the higher tiers of magic. When everyone treated a subject as nothing more than a convenient tool rather than a truth worth digging into, they naturally stalled out at the shallowest possible level of application.
As the lesson drew toward its end, Babbling paused and offered a summary. "I've now introduced all of the foundational runes across our previous lessons, so you should have a basic grasp of ancient runic script by this point."
"Learning to apply these runes correctly and skillfully isn't part of this term's curriculum. For the next few months, we'll be reviewing everything we've covered so far, making sure the foundation is solid. Any questions?"
Babbling asked it out of habit, fully expecting the usual dead silence in response. Instead, one student raised a hand.
"Miss Granger?"
"...Professor, you said just now that we've finished all the foundational material. I wanted to ask, have you seen what the papers have been reporting recently about Communication Runes?" Hermione asked carefully. "Aren't those foundational runes too? When will we get to study them?"
Communication Runes...
Babbling hadn't expected Hermione to bring that up. As a professor, and an expert in the field of runic script besides, she'd naturally kept close watch on any relevant news.
Not only did she know about it, she'd been thoroughly shaken by it, losing sleep over it for several nights running.
Everyone in the room remembered seeing the article in the papers too. And more importantly, everyone remembered exactly who'd written it.
"How do I put this..." Babbling found Hermione's question genuinely difficult to answer, taking a long moment to settle on her words. "Miss Granger, what we're studying now is only the foundational layer of ancient runic script, the branch with the widest circulation and application, and the one closest to our modern language."
"Beyond that, there are at least ten more distinct magically-charged runic systems in existence throughout the world."
"As for Mr. Riddle's Communication Runes, they don't belong to any existing system at all. He created that runic language entirely from scratch."
A ripple of noise broke through the quiet classroom. Tom publishing something wasn't news anymore; it had been a steady stream since first year, and everyone had long since gotten used to it.
But inventing an entirely new runic system from nothing, that was on another level of absurd altogether.
Their own Runic alphabet, after all, was said to have been a gift to Odin from the heavens and earth themselves, according to legend. Had Tom truly grown powerful enough to stand alongside figures out of myth?
"Surprised?" Babbling shrugged. "You're not the only ones. My colleagues and I have been in an uproar over it too. The letters haven't stopped coming for days. Honestly, Miss Granger, I was actually hoping you might pass along a message to Mr. Riddle for me. Would he consider joining the Ancient Runes Society and delivering a guest lecture for us?"
"What he's published is genuinely profound work, built on a multi-layered spiral structure, with every single character carrying an enormously complex construction behind it. There's no way to actually master it just from reading newspaper articles and papers. As for the difficulty you're asking about, if you manage to graduate with outstanding marks, you'd likely qualify to study it yourself."
Hermione blinked, caught off guard. She'd asked the question in the first place because she'd already approached Tom about learning Communication Runes and been turned down; he'd told her to build a stronger foundation first.
A little indignant about it, the young witch had come to the professor hoping for more details, only to be told she'd need outstanding marks in Runes just to even qualify.
The bell rang, and Hermione nodded absently, filing away Professor Babbling's message to pass along.
By the time the last class of the day let out, Hermione headed off to find Tom and deliver the message, only to spot him unexpectedly in the entrance hall, deep in conversation with a white-haired, elderly witch. Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall stood nearby, along with several other older witches and wizards she didn't recognize.
Tom spotted her and waved her over.
The young witch trotted over, and Tom took her hand as he addressed the elderly woman. "Professor Marchbanks, I'll have to pass on setting the exam questions. I've simply got too much on my plate to spare the additional attention it would require."
"Besides, having a student set the questions seems a bit improper, doesn't it? Aren't you worried I might leak them?"
"No, not remotely." The stooped Professor Marchbanks seemed entirely oblivious to the light teasing in Tom's tone, her expression staying perfectly serious as she spoke, voice carrying. "Even if you did leak them, it wouldn't be much of an issue. The Runes examination covers roughly the same material every single year. At most, you'd simply be confirming the syllabus for everyone in advance."
Marchbanks.
The name echoed in Hermione's head, and her eyes went wide.
That name, connected to examinations, at this particular level...
Could this possibly be the head of the Wizarding Examinations Authority, the very woman who'd overseen O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s for the better part of a century, Griselda Marchbanks?
And if that was true, what exactly had she just said, asking Tom to set the questions for both exams?