Patricia Rakepick

Madam Patricia Rakepick was a British witch in the employment of Gringotts Wizarding Bank in London. Educated at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry during her formative years, she was remembered by her former teacher Albus Dumbledore as an exceptional student who, according to Rubeus Hagrid, always was in trouble but always on top of her class.

After Patricia left school, she went on to become a famous Curse-Breaker, being celebrated by many as the world's most accomplished occupant of said position, having even been named Head Curse-Breaker by the goblins who ran the bank. By 1985, a book about her had been published.

Said to have had first-hand experience with the Cursed Vaults during her formative years, she was invited back to the school by Dumbledore to help put an end to the threat posed by the Cursed Vaults during the 1987–1988 school year.

Early life
Patricia Rakepick was born somewhere in the British Isles in late 1955 to 1956, into a wizarding family of unknown pedigree. She obtained a wand around the age of eleven shortly before she was to start attending school, which she most likely, purchased from Ollivander's Wand Shop like most other magical children.

Hogwarts years
Patricia Rakepick attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from 1967 to 1974. A gifted student, she quickly proved to be the most outstanding student of her year and always was at the top of all of her classes. While Professor Albus Dumbledore found her to be an exceptional pupil, she was nevertheless greatly disliked by most of her professors for her rebellious streak, a sentiment that did not improve when she, rather than being a good role model to her younger peers as she grew older instead became mentoring them in the art of trouble-making. Other teachers include Filius Flitwick and Rolanda Hooch.

In her third year, she chose at least two elective subjects; Care of Magical Creatures and Arithmancy. Either the same semester or during one of her remaining four years of schooling, she inquired the Care of Magical Creatures Professor, Silvanus Kettleburn, how to enter the Forbidden Forest without being seen. When he asked the reason as to why she wanted to do that, Rakepick told him she meant to explore the forest and study the creatures that dwelled within it, expressing a desire to become a Magizoologist upon leaving school. Accepting this explanation, the professor explained that the easiest way for students to enter the forest undetected was by broom, revealing secrets about the forest he had learned from numerous years spent exploring it himself. Afterwards, she reportedly spent quite as much time in the forest as she did in the castle. According to Rubeus Hagrid, the school's Keeper of Keys and Grounds during her student years, she more than once disappeared from the castle for days at the time. Patricia was a firm believer during her time at school that the Cursed Vaults existed, but the faculty did not heed her warning.

Given that she always was on top of her class, it is reasonable to assume that she achieved good results in her O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s examinations, being more than qualified for her future career.

Working for Gringotts
After leaving Hogwarts, Patricia Rakepick went on to work for Gringotts Wizarding Bank as a Curse-Breaker, having apparently been taken in by the allure of a "challenging career involving travel, adventure, and substantial, danger-related treasure bonuses." In the years that followed, she embarked on a number of daring expeditions to sites of historical sorcery from where significant treasure might be obtained and reveled in the fresh challenges and exotic change scenery that her line of work had to offer. She also had a Niffler called Sickleworth assigned to her, which occasionally would help her burrow for treasure.

Evidently a very efficient and gifted employee, her many curse-breaking adventures eventually won her both recognition and publicity when details of how she so expertly dealt with a wide variety of enchanted objects, magical creatures and, as she was known for her fierce competitive instinct, rivals alike, eventually reached the scope of a media hungry for thrilling tales to share with their readers. Over the years, a number of articles was published in the Daily Prophet; among them was one that claimed that she at one point killed a Sphinx with her bare hands, and another one stated that she once allegedly ripped the tail off a Manticore, both of which would would ultimately leave many who knew her only by reputation with the impression that Patricia Rakepick was not someone to be crossed, as well as highlighting her competence.

She ultimately came to be regarded by many as the world's finest Curse-Breaker, and was even promoted to the position of Head Curse-Breaker by the Gringotts goblins. By the mid-1980s, she had come to enjoy a rather illustrious reputation as one of the foremost experts in curse-breaking that her field had to offer.

In the 1986–1987 school year, Dumbledore spent time searching for her. He found her working at the Brazilian wizarding school, Castelobruxo, where she was exploring newly discovered ruins underneath the school. He invited her to join him at Hogwarts the next school year and look into the Cursed Vault problem which kept occurring at the school, in which she accepted.

Returning to Hogwarts
By the 1987–1988 school year, Professor Albus Dumbledore had invited Patricia Rakepick back to Hogwarts due to her firsthand experience with the Cursed Vaults, and introduced her to the school after the Start-of-Term Feast. Patricia was surprised to be invited back, since she thought she had created trouble for Dumbledore when she attended the school, and warned everyone not to search for the next vault and meddle with her job. She was apparently working in some capacity as a temporary member of the staff, as she was granted the power to give and dock house points, giving Jacob's sibling twenty house points for their success in learning the Shield Charm.

Despite Dumbledore having forbidden students from getting involved, Rakepick proceeded to train a group of students in dangerously powerful offensive spellwork, using it as a way of evaluating the students to find the one best suited to assist her in her own sanctioned search in the vaults. At some point, R sent her a letter commanding her to leave Hogwarts. The letter was found by Jacob's sibling and friends and it is unknown if Rakepick got to read it.

She later was said to have been seen interrogating a number of the ghosts at the school.

Physical appearance
Patricia Rakepick was a haughty-looking witch with long, red hair and blue eyes. Dressed for practicality yet with an obvious wizarding flair, she often wore a long-sleeved brown shirt and matching trousers, and a blood red waistcoat that was a shorter at the back than on the front. She had black robes and boots, as well as two light brown belts across her waist, onto which it was attached a sheath-like holster to hold her wand.

Personality and traits
A self-declared daredevil with little regard for rules or restrictions and a strong sense of entitlement, Patricia Rakepick was a highly intelligent and magically talented individual, as evidenced by both her top performance at Hogwarts as well as her later achievements in life. Very secure in her own judgement and immensely confident in her own abilities, she would often eye those with whom she conversed with a look of gleeful smugness, yet could demonstrate a sudden temper or disdain towards those of whom she did not think very highly, such as Ben Copper, whom she cruelly singled out during her evaluation of a group of students from which she wanted to pick an assistant for her sanctioned search for the Cursed Vaults.

According to Silvanus Kettleburn, she was a strict disciplinarian who did not suffer foolishness from anyone, be it from the Curse-Breakers working under her or domesticated magical creatures in her care. Her stringency in this regard was assumed to be the reason why Sickleworth was, according to Professor Kettleburn, the most well-behaved Niffler he had ever seen.

Known to take immense pride in her status as a world-renowned Curse-Breaker, she was not a particularly modest person, as seen by her shameless flaunting of her position of trust and prestige, even to her peers, in order to attempt to place herself above them. Not all talk and no bite, however, she was happy to be in the thick of the action, she is not someone to shy away from a dangerous situation, with even Rubeus Hagrid believing her to be completely fearless. Patricia also had a devious streak, actively encouraging students to be ruthless in the manner they dealt their rivals by telling them to ignore the restrictions that their professors otherwise would have put on duels, and recruiting students to participate in searching for the Cursed Vaults in spite of Headmaster Albus Dumbledore expressively forbidding them in doing so.

Magical abilities and skills
Patricia Rakepick was described as an exceptional student by Albus Dumbledore. She was stated to be a gifted witch who was always in trouble, but also always at the top of all her class. Some also described as devious and dangerous, and an individual one would rather have with you than against you.
 * Defence Against the Dark Arts: An academically gifted student who was always on the top of her class, Patricia Rakepick excelled in the subject and received top marks on her schoolwork: A remarkable feat, considering what would be likely to have been varying competence of the ever-shifting teachers in the subject who taught her. She was said to have spent as much time in the Forbidden Forest during her time as a pupil once she knew how to enter undetected, her skill in the subject undoubtedly was of great help in keeping the dangerous creatures that dwelled therein at bay. In adulthood, she was in seen by many as perhaps the finest Curse Breaker in the world, which served as a further testament to her ability of fending off Dark Magic, particularly in regard to breaking through curses. She also would have been highly proficient with counter-curses as to be able to halt or contain any curse that might have been unleashed upon her or her colleagues in the course of their duties to prevent such curses from killing them or make permanent damage. She also is accomplished at defensive spells, teaching Jacob's sibling to use the Shield Charm to great effect.
 * Martial magic: Patricia Rakepick was known to be a dangerous witch, and not without good reason; An advocate for violence and unafraid of using it herself, Rakepick was a self-professed no hold barred fighter who did not believe in putting restrictions on duelling, using curses, charms, transfiguration, potions, and even resorting to Muggle duelling if that was what it took to overcome an adversary. She even went as far as to admit that the Blasting Curse, a spell she herself described as being "quite dangerous, and oftentimes deadly," had served her well against rivals in the past.
 * Dark Arts: As a Curse-Breaker, Rakepick had a high level of knowledge on Dark Magic and how to break its hold on places that might house gold and riches that Gringotts Wizarding Bank might want in their vaults, and while not famed for practicing it herself, her understanding of this branch of magic's potency was such that, while testing a group of students to determine which of them would become her assistant in her search for the cursed vaults, professed that the Blasting Curse, a spell of potentially lethal effect if used against another living being, had served her well in dealing with enchanted objects, creatures and rivals and later encouraged them to follow her example by including curses in their repertoire for combative magic. She was also sure of her ability to dispatch of the six students she had called upon to test their worth while looking for an assistant for her search for the Cursed Vaults, if she had so desired. By her own admission, she had never believed in putting restrictions on duelling, encouraging the aforementioned group of students to be vicious in combat and openly disapproved of Jacob's sibling's lack of brutality in their spell-casting while duelling despite emerging victorious. She also taught spells she herself claimed to be potentially deadly to the students at the school to use in duels, indicating she had the skills, knowledge, willingness and malicious intent required to successfully cast spells of an even darker variety.
 * Physical combat skills: Madam Rakepick was known to encourage the infusion of physical combat into one's dueling style, stating she has never believed in putting restrictions on dueling, which implies that she either had done so in the past or at the very least was willing to if she deemed it necessary to overcome an adversary. She also once allegedly killed a Manticore with her bare hands and supposedly ripped the tail off a Chimera, both of which would, if true, be truly remarkable feats of physical prowess indeed.
 * Charms: Stated to have been a highly gifted student and always on the top of her class, Rakepick had great talent for charmswork. She even encouraged students at Hogwarts to use charms in duels, suggesting she is capable of effectively doing so herself.
 * Transfiguration: Albus Dumbledore, the school's Headmaster and former Head of the Transfiguration department, remembers her as having been an exceptional student back when he was still teaching. She also encouraged students at Hogwarts to use transfiguration in duels, suggesting she has the ability to effectively incorporate transfiguration spells in her martial magic.
 * Potions: As a pupil, Patricia excelled in potion-making, being top of her class in the subject. Considering her position as the greatest Curse Breaker, it is safe to assume that she particularly specialized in brewing potions that can help victims of curses, which she would likely prepare to anticipate the possibility of she or one of her colleagues falling afoul of a curse in the course of their duties, as well as potions that are useful in dueling, such as medical concotions like the Wiggenweld Potion, which she would likely constantly do to have at the ready potions that allows her to resist the effects of unfriendly spells in the case of a combat situation, as shown when she encouraged students to have potions useful in dueling such as medical concoctions like the Wiggenweld Potion at hand during dueling.
 * Herbology: An academically gifted student who was always on the top of her class, Patricia Rakepick excelled in the subject and received top marks on her schoolwork: She was able to identify gillyweed with a glance.
 * Care of Magical Creatures: If her affectionate fondness for Sickleworth, the Niffler assigned to her by Gringotts Wizarding Bank to help her to burrow underground for treasures on cursed sites, is any indication, Madam Rakepick was very knowledgeable on the topic and had a gift for looking after, interacting with, and gaining the trust of a wide variety of magical creatures. This was fully backed up by her teacher in the subject, Silvanus Kettleburn, who remembered her as his most gifted student during her time at Hogwarts. She also appeared to have had a good relationship with said professor, whom she once asked for help to enter the Forbidden Forest so that she could explore it and study the creatures therein in order to become a Magizoologist following her graduation, to which he agreed. Her knowledge and ability in handling dangerous creatures likely contributed in her ability to survive in there for as long as she did.
 * Arithmancy: Since becoming a Curse Breaker required at least an O.W.L. in Arithmancy, it is reasonable and logical to deduce that Rakepick was skilled in this subject.
 * Healing spells: Considering the dangers of her profession, it is not unreasonable to assume she would have been proficient with medical spells so she can mend injuries or prevent permanent incapacitations suffered by her or one of her colleagues as the result of a curse.
 * Flying: Madam Rakepick must have been a very proficient flier, as she often sneaked into the Forbidden Forest during her formative years as a student at Hogwarts, which she accomplished by broom. Notoriously massive and treacherous, it required a high level of control to not only be able to fly into/through it, but also to land safely. When Jacob's sibling learned how Madam Rakepick had managed to enter the forest, the individual in question resolved to do the same, but had to improve their abilities as a flier to do so safely despite being among the most talented fliers in their year, which highlighted Madam Rakepick's skill on a broom.
 * Languages: Given how Rakepick worked closely with goblins at Gringotts Bank, it is highly likely that he spoke Gobbledegook.

Possessions

 * Wand: Rakepick owned a wand of unknown materials.
 * Holster: She owned a holster to hold her wand when not in use.
 * Eye of Horus pin: Madam Rakepick owned a pin depicting the Eye of Horus, presumably a protective amulet used in curse-breaking.
 * Sickleworth: A Niffler assigned to her by Gringotts Wizarding Bank to burrow underground for treasure in cursed areas. She was very fond and affectionate towards him, calling him "sweet".

Behind the scenes

 * Despite being world-wide famous, Penny Haywood and Jacob's sibling did not recognise her by appearance prior to Dumbledore's introduction.
 * Rubeus Hagrid did not seem to have a high opinion about her, and warned Jacob's sibling to watch out for her. Severus Snape's opinion of her is even lower, as he does not trust Rakepick at all and only tolerates her due to Dumbledore and he even asked Jacob's sibling to bring anything that proves she cannot be trusted to him.
 * Since she wore the Eye of Horus, she might at some point in her career have worked in Egypt.
 * Depending on their months of birth, Patricia and Narcissa Black may have been in the same year.

Notes and references
Patricia Rakepick Патриция Рейкпик