Letter 39: J. Alfred Prufrock to Severus Snape, 28th November 2000

A/N: For simplicity's sake, titles of books, journals etc are underlined and emphases are italicised. In reviving the old tradition of epistolary novels, I understand the plot may be a little slow, laborious and difficult to follow. Some might consider it AU and a little OOC.

In order not to weary the reader's patience, a number of letters from the series of correspondences have been suppressed; those only have been given which appeared necessary to a complete understanding of the events in this group. For the same reason, some letters from the actors in the events of this drama have also been suppressed.

Some readers have been asking me how Snape knew to decipher the first message within the journal article in letter 35.

The answer to this is explicitly stated in letter 36 (the letter, not the journal article), where Severus writes to Prufrock, "There is another layer of meaning in the text. I curse myself for teaching her esoteric reading in exoteric writing!" This means that Severus as Jigger taught Hermione how to do this sort of thing – 'this sort of thing' being messages within messages. This is the basic tenet of exoteric reading in esoteric writing. It's something that the school of political philosophy I belong to tries to imbue in its student. Therefore, the underlying assumption which is implied but not stated is that Jigger and Hermione have been communicating occasionally in this manner through their letters during her duration as his student at York. It is for this reason that I suppressed their correspondence in the York years.

Letter 36 continues, "I am pleased that I have taught her well – that meaning is not easily discerned." This implies that Severus (as Jigger) had taught Hermione more than one way of exoteric reading in esoteric writing; he also taught her esoteric writing in exoteric composition.

Finally, letter 36 says, "I, too, am capable of engaging in this battle of wits." Naturally, he taught it to her...He should know.

Now that that has been cleared up, on with the next letter and article...

Proestigium or What the Seasons may Bring

Letter 39: J. Alfred Prufrock to Severus Snape, 28th November 2000

J. Alfred Prufrock

15 Windswept Terrace

Hetty's Fields

Leeds, West Yorkshire

United Kingdom

28th November 2000

Philosophical Alchemical Theory wants Jigger to be its new editor, apprise me of your decision so that the changes will be effected in the next edition.

Haven't you made it clear to Miss Granger yet? By Merlin's beard! Do something about it, please! I am not an intermediary who will intercede on her behalf. The sooner you tell her yourself exactly what your intentions are, the sooner normalcy will return to our lives. Albus does not approve of your present course of actions and neither do I. Where is the disagreeable Severus Snape that I know? Where is he who will silence any woman's words with a contemptuous scowl and a sharp flick of the wrist?

Attached is a copy of Miss Granger's review of your article in Midlands Journal of Alchemical Studies. Please reply to her epistles and tell her your sentiments, for all our sakes.

Regards,

Prufrock

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Midlands Journal of Alchemical Studies, Vol. 397, No. 11.

Review of Arsenius Jigger's Theoretical Alchemy: A Study in the Properties of Yew in Midlands Journal of Alchemical Studies, Vol. 397, No. 10.

By Hermione Granger

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yew bark's usage in potions has long been restricted to the treatment of chronic sciatica and joint pains. On this score, Jigger is foremost in the field. Unusually though, Theoretical Alchemy presents no findings on any new features of yew. However, this does not detract from his purpose of speculating on yew's other probable uses in potions. As scholars familiar with Jigger's research will know, he has already contributed greatly to the study of yew by establishing nine uses for its bark and six uses for its sap. Virtually everything that we know of its use, outside of wand making, was expounded in the many potions created by Jigger. Even so, his theoretical speculations require further qualification. As a hypothetical form, pure extract of yew is a difficult possibility to grasp. Landau's 8 pillar study on yew in 1987 states that yew has too many complex composites to impart a definitive essence per se. Research into the matter yields the same findings as Landau. Epistemologically, it is theoretically possible to obtain pure essence from any plant. As an actual abstract, however, yew extract is an impossibility given the different structure and uses of its bark, sap, leaves and so on. Despite this, the theoretical implications of pure yew extract open many exciting doors in the study of pain killers. Yielding to his trenchant argument then, I anxious wait, with the rest of the Potions community, to see when Jigger will succeed in his ratification of yew extract. Concurrent to this hypothesis, is the novel theory that ground yew bark could be mixed with belladonna to produce a remedy to relieve chronic migraines. On this note, Jigger is rightly cautious as the potion is meant to hailed rather than ingested. Reconstructing the tradition uses of yew in new potions, Jigger proves why he is the top of the field. Rarely have we seen the simple re-sequencing of ingredients addition applied to the uses that Jigger mentions. Until recently, it was assumed that the usage of yew dispelled the need to follow any strict order of the ingredients in the potion. Putting this belief down, Jigger proves that rearranging then order of yew potions engenders multiple variants that could be used for other purposes. Therefore, it evinces the fact that potions using yew as one of its ingredients are more volatile than others.

Environment, too, as Jigger points out, can be seen to win out over the inaccuracies of sequencing potions ingredients. Day is most suited to brewing yew potions that aid in the symptoms that only afflict the patient at night. Maletropha and other such yew potions used for alleviating eye strain and headaches are best brewed at night. Yet, Jigger does not claim that the conditions must be tightly controlled. Mayhaps, he feels that it is already implied in his words. I feel that he should have stated the matter explicitly so as not to give rise to more confusion. Noting this environmental influence on yew, Jigger goes on to propose that collecting yew at different times of the day would also yield different effects in the potions. Doubtlessly, this fits perfectly with his theory that nothing must be left to chances in the brewing of the perfect potion. Many may regard these efforts as stultifying the simplistic art of yew potions. Addressing this directly, Jigger says, "The objective of this study is not to provide a treatise on the educational method of brewing yew potions in any practical or positive sense; rather it constitutes a radical critique of what contemporary yew potions studies have become." Reconstituting it so that it resembles a table of virtues, Jigger explains that the using yew in its most natural state (in the form of the pure extract) would hold it as the common unvarying element in the potion. Reasoning that yew extract is a delicate potential that must be nurtured if it is to flourish, he shows how careful isolation of yew will preserve its shelf life. Yew, then, is one of the most versatile ingredients available to alchemy. Moreover, its ability to savour the other ingredients in which it is stewed enhances its dual abilities as catalyst and character ingredient. Extending the possibilities of yew, then, would be of great use to all practitioners of our craft.

Footnotes

Proestigium is Latin for illusion. Ironically, the English word Prestige derives from it.

If you extract the first letter of each of the review's sentences (notice that I stress sentences, not every capital alphabet), they read, "YOU HAVE ALREADY CORRUPTED MY MIND. MARRY ME"

Readers have been asking me why HG and SS are communicating through journal articles rather than letters. The answer is simple – SS refuses to reply to HG's letters, instead he chooses to reply to her in kind through journal articles. Why journal articles? She started the ball rolling with the article annexed to letter 35. I assume as should you that SS and HG read, subscribe and contribute to several alchemical/potion journals.

By now, you should have realised that "corresponding" through journal articles is extremely tedious because HG and SS have to comb through all the potions and alchemical journals, find the other party's articles, decipher the message (if any) in the article and write a response to the person and the alchemical community. But when dealing with a stubborn man like Severus, what else can one do?