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Albus Dumbledore paced back and forth.

After the events of professor Lupin's rather eventful lesson the American transfer student had collapsed.

He'd been intrigued and disturbed upon hearing of the odd events that had transpired during the lesson.

From what he had gathered and Lupin's own memory of the event, something most unusual had occurred.

He'd been most curious about the transfer student from the moment Ollivander had contacted him after she had visited him to have her wand checked before school started.

Few witches her age had a familiar, nor one as peculiar as her own at that. But it wasn't the cat Ollivander had contacted him about, though he had brought it up briefly. No, no it was her wand that was so intriguing.

Exotic wands were by no means uncommon, he himself had once had one made from swish cheese and goat's hair – not Humphrey Belcher's greatest invention; the thing had promptly exploded when he had tried to use it, leaving him covered in bits of cheese and smelling of goats for the better part of a week.

Ollivander who she had been instructed to visit to verify that her wand was in working order had found that hers had been a great deal better constructed than Dumbledore's own disastrous foray into strange wands, using while unconventional, components more traditionally in line with what would normally be considered viable wand making material.

The wand maker upon examining her wand had been shocked to find it made of Elder and the webbing of a cousin of the Acromantula suspended in what seemed to be blood.

A most rare and ill advised combination Ollivander had never thought to see, yet the combination was a perfect match for her, and wasn't that... curious.

Unusually long, thirteen and a half inches– and wand length had always been traditionally thought indicative of and individuals power amongst - in the case of males, other things.

Elder the rarest wand wood of all, reputed to be deeply unlucky elder wands were trickier to master than any other. It was surprising then to see it in the wand of a young girl.

Highly unusual, but not unheard of, but spider webbing, blood?
Such a thing had not been recorded anywhere in history.

Elder was tricky, it contained powerful magic, but it took a remarkable witch to keep an elder wand for any length of time.

In truth only a highly unusual person would find their perfect match in elder.

Spider's web on the other hand would require a personal affinity that went beyond the norm, and blood? Well the less said about blood the better.

Such a combination Ollivander shivered to think of it, never in all his years would had he so much as attempted such a thing. Yet there it sat, perfect and unearthly.

He had contacted Dumbledore at once.

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The headmaster was brought out of his musings as the girl on the bed began to stir.

"Ah Miss Jones you're awake."

Coraline awoke to find herself in the Hospital Wing. Blearily she turned to face the headmaster; she must have fainted after the stress of the day's events.

The Headmaster droned on for a while before getting to the point. I was clear he wanted to question her about what had happened. "Would you mind if I asked you some questions about what occurred during professor Lupin's class, I was hoping you might be able to shed some light on what happened?"

She nodded lackadaisically; she still hadn't quite recovered from her impromptu sleep.

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Dumbledore paused for a long moment before nodding his head and speaking. "I was wondering if you might be able to tell me about the women who emerged from the boggart."

Coraline was quiet for a long time before she answered. "She was my mother."

"Your mother?" He couldn't help but wish she would elaborate.

When no more was forthcoming memories of his own family, of his own mother and of poor Ariana stopped him for questioning her further on the subject, he knew just how painful some memories were.

"I don't suppose you know how it was that she was able to appear in such a manner?"

Unbidden his mind turned to his research of the dark arts during his youth and then to another young boy who had once owned a wand made of elder.

"Even dead gods can dream."

"My mother was powerful, and old."

"I don't know how she did it."

A strange answer, 'even dead gods can dream'?

She was proving reticent, though he supposed it was to be expected.

He let out a sigh, how had Coraline Jones's mother – who had been by the girls own reckoning assuredly dead, managed to appear even if only for a short while, sprouting forth from inside a boggart, tearing it's mouth apart to clamber out. She had been no mere apparition, no ghost or imitation formed by the boggart.

No, it had been a true resurrection, even if only for a moment to impart final words upon her daughter.

All of his knowledge said such a thing was not possible. Every bit of research that had ever been performed had been met with failure and there were no recorded instances of anything to the contrary.

The girl returned to sleep as his mind turned to thoughts of dreaming gods and wands of elder and spider web.

He would have to keep an eye on her.

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An: Cheers to anyone who picked out the mass effect reference.