Patricia Rakepick

Patricia Rakepick
Biographical information
Born	Between 1 September 1955 and 31 August 1956
Nationality	British or Irish
Title(s)	Madam Curse-Breaker Professor
Physical information
Species	Human
Gender	Female
Hair colour	Red
Eye colour	Blue
Skin colour	Light
Magical characteristics
Wand	Unknown length, wood and core
Patronus	Lioness
Affiliation
Occupation	Head Curse-Breaker at Gringotts Wizarding Bank (? -1988) Professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (1988-1989)
House	Gryffindor
Loyalty	Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (formerly) Gryffindor Gringotts Wizarding Bank The Cabal

Professor Patricia Rakepick (born c. 1956) was a British Dark witch and a world-famous Curse-Breaker for Gringotts Wizarding Bank.

Educated at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, during her formative years she was an exceptional student, top of her class, who, regardless, was always in trouble. After Patricia left school, her curse-breaking adventures abroad eventually earned her some publicity: her exploits were featured in several newspaper articles and at least one biography was published.

Said to have had first-hand experience with the Cursed Vaults during her student years, she was invited back to the school during the 1987–1988 school year by Professor Dumbledore, the school's Headmaster, to help put an end to the threat posed by the Vaults. At the end of the year, she accepted his offer to assume the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts instructor, where she offered more freedom and protection to Jacob's sibling during their search for the remaining vaults.

However, by the end of the next year, Rakepick's true intentions were revealed. She was working with the malevolent organisation known as 'R', and manipulated Jacob's sibling to open the Portrait Vault, the last major obstacle before the final Cursed Vault. When Jacob's sibling and their friends discovered the truth, they managed to defeat Rakepick, forcing her to flee Hogwarts.

Biography

Early life

Patricia Rakepick was born sometime in late 1955 or early 1956.

Hogwarts years (1967-1974)

Hogwarts, her old school

Patricia Rakepick attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from 1967 to 1974; she was Sorted into Gryffindor. Being gifted, she quickly proved to be the most outstanding student of her year and was always top of her class. 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, began mentoring them in the art of trouble-making. According to Rubeus Hagrid, during her student years, she was rumoured to be friendly with the Marauders (Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Sirius Black, and James Potter), who Patricia to some extent mentored in mischief-making. Some of her teachers included Filius Flitwick and Rolanda Hooch: the former was determined to keep an open mind about Rakepick, whereas the latter had a very low opinion of her.

In her third year, she chose at least two electives: Care of Magical Creatures and Arithmancy. At some point in her student years, she asked the Care of Magical Creatures Professor, Silvanus Kettleburn, how to enter the Forbidden Forest without being seen, telling him she meant to explore the forest and study the creatures that dwelled within it, and 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 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 disappeared from the castle for days at the time on more than one occasion. During her many trips into the forest, she encountered one or more members of the local Centaur colony, a negative experience for both parties. Even in adulthood, she resented and distrusted centaurs in general, warning Jacob's sibling to be cautious of them. 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 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

Gringotts Wizarding Bank

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, where she was in charge of breaking protective curses on old forgotten wizarding treasure and retrieving it. She had a Niffler, called Sickleworth, assigned to aid her in burrowing for gold at cursed sites.

Evidently a very efficient and gifted employee, her many curse-breaking adventures (involving a wide variety of dark and dangerous magical creatures, enchanted objects, and rivals alike) eventually won her both recognition and publicity. Over the years, a number of articles about her were published in the Daily Prophet: among them one claiming that she had at one point killed a Sphinx with her bare hands, and another stating that she once allegedly ripped the tail off a Manticore.

According to Severus Snape, she made a career out of eliminating her competition, leaving many who knew her by reputation only with the impression that she was not to be crossed.

At some point in her career, she met an American wizard who worked as an Auror for the Magical Congress of the United States of America, who advised her on the subject of constant vigilance and told her that there were "more than one way to skin a Kneazle", a sentiment she agreed with.

In due course, Rakepick became the best Curse-Breaker at Gringotts, being promoted to the post of Head Curse-Breaker, a role she held by at least in the mid-to-late-1980s. By then, she had come to enjoy a rather illustrious reputation as one of the foremost experts in curse-breaking that her field had to offer.

Curse-breaking consultant at Hogwarts (1987-1988)

In the 1986–1987 school year, as the Cursed Vaults at Hogwarts began posing a threat to the school, Albus Dumbledore spent some time searching for Madam Rakepick. He found her in Brazil, working at the wizarding school Castelobruxo, exploring the newly-discovered ruins underneath the building. Dumbledore invited her to join him at Hogwarts the following school year so she could look into the Cursed Vaults situation; she accepted.

Arrival at the Great Hall

Professor Dumbledore and Madam Rakepick in the Great Hall

Arriving at Hogwarts Castle alongside the students on 1 September 1987, Madam Rakepick entered the Great Hall shortly before the Start-of-Term Feast of the 1987–1988 school year, where she was greeted by and engaged in deep conversation with Professor Dumbledore. When it was time for the Headmaster's welcoming speech, however, Dumbledore took his usual place at the Owl Lecturn: addressing the students, he said that an important part of the learning process was to learn how to identify and overcome dangers, both seen and unseen, as a pretext to praise the older students for their bravery in the face of adversity in light of recent events at the school after someone had tampered with two of the Cursed Vaults and the hardships they all had endured because of it.

Rakepick adressing the students

While Dumbledore assured his charges that the staff would do their utmost to keep them safe, he also explained that neither he, nor the faculty, had all the answers; stepping aside so Madam Rakepick could take his place behind the lectern, Rakepick thanked the Headmaster for such a warm welcome, commenting on her own age-old disregard for the school rules being part of her surprise at his invitation. After a short introduction of her own, mentioning both her work at Gringotts and how her suspicions about the Cursed Vaults went all the way back to her own education at Hogwarts, she proceeded to affirm her intentions of finding the Cursed Vaults and unveil the secrets within — and urged the students to be forthcoming whenever she might need their assistance, but also also strongly advised them against trying to get in any way involved without her prior permission.

Charged with anything having to do with the Cursed Vaults, Madam Rakepick was notified when two students were placed in harm's way by wandering mindlessly into the Forbidden Forest, apparently while under the influence of a somnambulism of some sort. Recognising this as the same sleepwalking curse that had been unleashed on the school years ago, she visited the victims at the Hospital Wing: one was a young Gryffindor boy whose injuries were so severe that he was in no condition to provide her with any useful information; the other was a Ravenclaw girl named Tulip Karasu. Karasu was being visited by the ringleader of a group of students that she knew was greatly involved in breaking the curses placed on the last two vaults that had been meddled with. Overhearing how they were discussing the vaults and the reason why the curse would make students walk into the Forbidden Forest of all places, a question with potentially dangerous implications, Madam Rakepick finally made her presence known to the two young conspirators.

Rakepick visiting the sleepwalkers at the Hospital Wing

Intruding on their conversation, Madam Rakepick said she had been wondering the same thing since the last time the sleepwalking curse had sent students to their deaths via the dangerous beasts inside the forest. Confronted with her eavesdropping, however, she shifted the blame over to them by reminding them that, in no uncertain terms, the Cursed Vaults were no longer their concern. When Madam Rakepick learned the reason the visiting student wanted to find the Vaults was so they could find their brother Jacob, who had disappeared shortly after his expulsion for inadvertently endangering the school during his own search for the vaults, Rakepick changed her mind, suggesting they could help each other. Telling Jacob's sibling that if they were to help her they should be aware of the dangers involved, Rakepick invited them to the Training Grounds to learn a new spell that would allow them to properly defend themselves. Rakepick then left to find Miss Karasu's, as she wished to discuss the latter's sleep-walking incident with in private.

The Curse-Breaker's apprentice

Rakepick mentoring Jacob's sibling

Already there when Jacob's sibling arrived for their lesson, Madam Rakepick, who by then had been informed by the staff that the pupil before her was quite gifted, decided to try and solidify their potential alliance by appealing to their shared experience of embarking on curse-breaking adventures and the understanding of the dangers involved. Going as far as to proclaim them a curse-breaker on equal footing as herself, she went on to emphasise the importance of self-defence. She then trained Jacob's sibling in the use of the Shield Charm, justifying teaching them it prematurely by arguing that "curse-breakers like themselves" might very well not be alive to learn it another time:

During the first part of the tutorial, Jacob's sibling practised casting the Shield Charm against Death Eater dummies while Rakepick observed and occasionally offered advice. After sensing that Jacob's sibling was capable enough, she decided to test them, dismissing their concerns that the Blasting Curse she wanted to use was potentially deadly; as a witch who lived for the thrill, she found that which was not deadly was very dull. Jacob's sibling was able to cast a fully-fledged Shield Charm in time, deflecting the curse. Congratulating them on their success, Rakepick noted that their professors were right to commend their talents, and ended the lesson by saying they were likely to meet again soon, before leaving the training grounds.

The sleepwalking epidemic

Madam Rakepick and Professor Snape with the sleepwalking student

Shortly thereafter, Rakepick was interrogating the school's house-elves when Severus Snape, the Potions Master at Hogwarts, came to her, saying he had found another sleepwalking student. He took her to see a Gryffindor boy who was found in the Forbidden Forest; the boy was standing upright, yet trapped in slumber. The examination of the pupil devolved into a petty spat rooted in lingering resentment from their own student years, with the Head of Slytherin House accusing Rakepick of tampering with the Cursed Vaults, while she in turn mocked Snape's inability to let go of grudges. In the end, they agreed to put aside their personal animosity and work together to bring the student to the Hospital Wing.

As the 1987–1988 school year went on, the faculty continued to watch the perimeter of the Forbidden Forest in an effort to protect the students. Every so often, members of the staff such as Filius Flitwick and Rubeus Hagrid would find pupils wandering off to what would could very well have been their own death at the teeth and claws of the dangerous magical creatures lurking therein, had it not been for their timely intervention. As per Dumbledore's instruction, Madam Rakepick was kept well informed of these incidents and began to visit the Hospital Wing on a regular basis to see if there was anything more to be learned from sleepwalking victims who woke up. Rakepick also set up her own network of informants, including Merula Snyde, to keep her au courant about almost everything going on at Hogwarts. Around this time, she also looked into the possibility of a Cursed Vault in Hogsmeade, which led her to make inquiries at Three Broomsticks Inn.

At some point, Rakepick was informed that Jacob's sibling had been asking the teachers about her, as well as researching the creatures of the Forbidden Forest. In return, Rakepick made inquiries into Jacob's sibling as well, questioning their classmates such as Penny Haywood. Finally, Rakepick sent Jacob's sibling a letter arranging a meeting in the Artefact Room for a private discussion. While not angry with them for snooping, she said that if they had questions about her, they could ask them to her face, as no one in the castle actually knew her as well as they thought they did. She also admitted that she considered them a standout from the student at Hogwarts, by virtue of their considerable talents and their reasons for wanting to find the vaults, and encouraged their pursuit of them. She also suggested they ask Professor Silvanus Kettleburn about how to enter the Dark Forest without being detected, since had spent a considerable amount of time exploring the forest and as such was privy to many of its secrets. Since he had once shared information regarding the forest with Rakepick when she was a student, he might be persuaded to do the same for Jacob's sibling.

The recruitment drive

Madam Rakepick with her handpicked candidates

With her search for the vaults hampered by the sleepwalking curse, Rakepick needed an assistant. She contacted all the students who met her criteria: above average in intelligence and ability, some sort of talent or expertise, and experience with the Cursed Vaults. She gathered her candidates at the training grounds to put them through a trial that would determine which of them would become her assistant. Six of her seven choices turned up, with only Penny declining Rakepick's offer because she felt more like a potion-maker than a curse-breaker. When questioned by Ismelda Murk as to why anyone would want to be her assistant, Madam Rakepick hinted that, she would be teaching her assistant powerful magic the likes of which they could not learn from any of their professors. She used the Blasting Curse on a Mechanical Death Eaters to illustrate her point.

It did not take long before the chosen six were called to assemble at Training Grounds a second time. Rather than teaching them another curse, Rakepick said they were to duel each other, and encouraged them to bypass the usual restrictions by using Curses, Charms, Transfiguration, Potions and even physical violence if that was what they had to do in order to win, explaining that she expected them to from one another that evening. The last one standing would become her assistant. She let Jacob's sibling pick their opponent first, and after they had triumphed over their chosen adversary, Rakepick ended the session, asking the victor to stay behind to see if they would be interested in a private lesson to teach them a spell she believed to "align with [your] specific interest". Before leaving the ground, she expressed her appreciation for their determination and thirst for knowledge and wished Jacob's sibling luck on their search for the Forbidden Forest.

Search for the vaults

Professor Kettleburn and Madam Rakepick introducing Sickleworth

Later, Rakepick let Professor Kettleburn use Sickleworth as a teaching aid in his Care of Magical Creatures class on Nifflers. Afterwards, introduced the students to her pet, and said he had been assigned to her by the management of Gringotts Wizarding Bank to burrow underground for treasure hidden at cursed sites. She also told the students how she came up with his name and affectionately described his sweet disposition and destructive capabilities. After class had ended, Rakepick brushed off Kettleburn's expressions of gratitude, simply commenting that everyone should be aware of how inadvisable it was to keep Nifflers as pets. She was taken somewhat by surprise when he replied that he had 12 Nifflers of his own, which had cost him his house, boat and favourite peg-leg, but he was eager to get more.

As part of her search for the Cursed Vaults, Rakepick interrogated the castle's ghosts, though this proved unfruitful. Around the same time, she became aware that an unidentified, possibly Dark Wizard had attacked and threatened Jacob's sibling one night in the Clocktower Courtyard. Rakepick wanted to uncover the Dark Wizard's true identity, and started her own investigation parallel to the one being conducted by Penny Haywood. Later, she approached Sixth Year Gryffindor Prefect Bill Weasley, and informed him that if he wished to be a Curse-Breaker like herself, becoming Head Boy in his final year would help him reach that goal. Shortly thereafter, having resumed her duties of searching for the Cursed Vaults on her own, Rakepick was content with observing the students in the Great Hall. Upon spotting Jacob's sibling, she inquired about Mr Bilton Bilmes, the proprietor of Zonko's Joke Shop, whom she had encountered on one of her trips to Hogsmeade, as she thought there was something "peculiar" about him.

Madam Rakepick conferring with Jacob's sibling

Jacob's sibling sent Rakepick an owl, requesting another meeting at the training grounds; they were searching for a jewelled arrow head that belonged to the centaurs, and wanted Rakepick's advice on the matter. While happy to assist, she nevertheless insisted that she would only do so once they had improved their proficiency in combative magic. When asked why there had to be a prerequisite, Rakepick said that she helping them more than they knew. After seeing Jacob's sibling work on their offensive and defensive spell-casting to her satisfaction, Madam Rakepick complimented them on their improving skill before returning to the matter at hand. On the subject of the arrowhead, she suggested that it might be buried somewhere inside the castle, reminding them that with magic, one could easily bury something without dirt or shovel. She also promised that if they proved themselves capable of caring for a Niffler, she would lend them her own to help them find the arrowhead.

Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor (1988-1989)

Rackpick took the job as Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, despite know the rumours of the position being cursed. As a curse-breaker, she felt she was uniquely suited to the task and considered the previous professors failings to be a sign of the failings. Her lessons for the Fifth years, including Jacob's sibling, covered topics such as ghouls, and the Impediment Jinx.

She took William Weasley, Merula Snyde, and Jacob's sibling on as assistant Curse-Breakers, forming a team to find the next cursed vault. She immediately taught them the Incarcerous Spell on the Hogwarts training grounds at night.

On the run (1989-?)

Rakepick killing Rowan

Sometime during the 1989–1990 school year, Rakepick returned to the Forbidden Forest and ran into Jacob's sibling and his friends. She engaged in a duel with them, eventually casting the Killing Curse attempting to hit Ben Copper, but he was pushed out of the way by Rowan Khanna and the spell killed them instantly.

Physical appearance

Patricia Rakepick was a haughty-looking witch with wavy 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 decorated with a dragon scale texture, and a blood red waistcoat that was a shorter at the back than on the front. She wore black robes, on which an ornamental Eye of Horus was pinned, high boots and white gloves, as well as two light brown belts across her waist, which held a leather for her wand.

Personality and traits

While a self-declared daredevil with little regard for rules or restrictions and with 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. While she was sorted into Gryffindor upon arriving at Hogwarts, Severus Snape noted her to be unusually cunning for a member of that house.

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

A highly accomplished witch, Patricia Rakepick was extremely talented, highly intelligent and rather powerful. Indeed, many held her abilities in such a high regard that many considered her to be the best Curse-Breaker in the world.

• Magical Mastery: Undeniably of above average in intelligence and ability, even Albus Dumbledore, arguably the greatest wizard of all time, openly respected her abilities. An exceptional pupil, she were one of the cleverest Hogwarts students of her time. In adulthood, she became a powerful Curse-Breaker for Gringotts Wizarding Bank and rose to become, not only in charge of such operations, but also widely believed to have been the greatest one alive. Rubeus Hagrid, the Keeper of Keys and Grounds during her formative years and a member of the Order of the Phoenix, considered her a dangerous witch whom he would rather have with him than against him, a claim fully backed up by Severus Snape, who attended Hogwarts around the same time and usually thought very little of members of Gryffindor House, yet acknowledged that she had built her career on "removing the competition" and made for a dangerous and formidable adversary indeed. Always on top of her class, she was known to have been very proficient in at least Astronomy, Charms, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Flying, Herbology, History of Magic, Potions, Transfiguration, Arithmancy and Care of Magical Creatures. In addition, despite their enmity, Severus Snape admitted, even if reluctantly, that out of all of the inhabitants of Hogwarts, the only one he knew for sure capable of stopping her would be Dumbledore himself. Rakepick herself was unafraid of challenging Snape or McGonagall, both of whom were extremely powerful and skilled Professors of Hogwarts, with her even deeming herself fully capable of beating McGonagall had she chose to fight her when they argued. Her mere presence was enough for a group of dark wizards to abandon trying to fight Jacob's sibling and Merula. Even the highly arrogant Merula Snyde acknowledged Rakepick as definitely being far more skilled than both her and Jacob's sibling, with her stating that Jacob's sibling wouldn't stand a chance against the at the time Professor of DADA even if they had beaten all of their friends, which was proven by how Rakepick effortlessly defeated and destroyed their wand, previously making short work of Ben Copper just after he had beaten them.
• Defence Against the Dark Arts: Patricia Rakepick was known to have had a pronounced aptitude for the Defence Against the Dark Arts during her formative years, and her skill and proficiency only grew in the following years, during which she encountered (and expertly dealt with) a great many dangerous creatures, magical artefacts and curses throughout her career as a Curse-Breaker, which served as a further testament to her ability of fending off Dark Magic. In addition to an impressive academic record, she was also said to have spent as much time in the Forbidden Forest during her time as a pupil once she knew how to enter undetected, and her skill in the subject undoubtedly was of great help in keeping the dangerous creatures that dwelled therein at bay. As a matter of fact, Madam Rakepick's abilities in fending off the Dark Arts was sufficiently potent for Albus Dumbledore to eventually offer her the post of Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor of Hogwarts. During which, she effectively taught her students on Hex-deflection, spells to defend from Pixies and also the use of the Impediment Jinx and Stunning Spell. Her reputation on fighting the Dark Arts was such that her presence alone made a group of dark wizards wary, one of whom she easily subdued and they were not willing to challenge her.
• Martial magic: 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. According to Severus Snape, she had built her career on 'eliminating the competition', suggesting she had duelled and killed more than a few competitors, or at the very least injured them to the point of permanent incapacitation. After admitting to having had an argument with Minerva McGonagall that lead the then Transfiguration teacher to leave in anger, she made an off-hand comment to Jacob's sibling about it had been "a wise decision on her part", suggesting Rakepick thought herself capable of defeating McGonagall if things had "gotten out of hand". She also was confident that she would have no trouble defeating Rosmerta when she challenged Rakepick to kill her, although she backed away because Rosmerta had the advantage of several Aurors on her side. Snape acknowledged that the only one who could for sure defeat her should she prove to be malicious would be Dumbledore. Rakepick later easily subdued Ben Copper just as he was about to kill Jacob's Sibling with a single powerful Blasting Curse that sent him flying across half the Clocktower Courtyard and straight into a wall, knocking him unconscious. As Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, Rakepick also effectively instructed her students on martial magic, at one point in order to discipline Jacob's sibling, she instantly overtook them before they could even cast a spell, destroying their wand.
• 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 was capable of identifying various dark creatures and artefacts with ease. While not famed for practising it herself, her understanding of its 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 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. She at one point even threatened to murder Madam Rosmerta, the landlady of the Three Broomsticks Inn in the village of Hogsmeade when she stood in her way during Rakepick's search for information about the Cursed Vaults, only backing away because Rosmerta informed her two of the customers present that day also happened to be Aurors. If nothing else, it showcase's Rakepick's certainty in her ability to cast the Killing Curse. Her Blasting Curse was powerful enough to send him flying across the edge of the Clocktower Courtyard and straight into a wall, instantly knocking him out. She also performed dark spells herself during her time teaching DATDA to test the strength of the protective enchantments of Jacob's sibling and at one point effectively instructed her students how to use the Impediment Jinx. In order to teach Jacob's sibling a lesson, Rakepick cast a curse that destroyed their wand instantly but left them unharmed. She was also proficient in the Cruciatus Curse, easily breaking a Dark Wizard she practised it on while stating she was holding back and claiming she could make Jacob's sibling see torture beyond their imagination had she used full capability. She also sadistically tortured Merula Snyde with the Cruciatus Curse in the Portrait Vault in an attempt to kill her, subjecting her to agonising pain, resulting in her being hospitalised as a result of her injuries. Along with that, she was also revealed to have cursed her dark artifacts so powerfully even Snape was unable to lift the curse, with Dumbledore being the only one adept enough in defensive skills out of the professors to successfully neutralize the curses to study them. Her willingness and skill in utilising extremely dangerous and even lethal dark magic on her enemies, ironically showed herself to be a very powerful and malevolent Dark witch, despite having spent much of her career fiercely opposing the dark arts and all its practitioners, however using it ruthlessly and callously to achieve her own sinister goals. Rakepick was capable of casting the Killing Curse, which she used to ruthlessly murder Rowan Khanna with, showing the true diabolical extent of her abilities in this field.
• Transfiguration: Albus Dumbledore, the school's Headmaster and former Head of the Transfiguration department, remembered 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 had the ability to effectively incorporate transfiguration spells in her martial magic. When she taught one of the students how to repel spiders, she quickly conjured a spider for the student to practise on. In addition, she also instructed her team of hand-picked students how to cast Incarcerous Spell. Given how Conjuration is one of the most difficult and advanced branches of transfiguration, her proficiency in Conjuring Spells clearly demonstrated her very impressive talents in this field. She was also proficient in Vanishment, as she was able to teach her fifth year DADA students how to cast the Snake-Vanishing Spell effectively.
• Charms: Noted to have always been the top of her class, Rakepick had remarkable talent in charm-work. Her encouraging the students of Hogwarts to use Charms in duels showed that she was proficient in incorporating charms into her martial magic. Rakepick was able to effectively and quickly teach Jacob's sibling how to cast the Shield Charm and also multiple other Defensive Charms in their DADA classes and outside the classroom, including Lacarnum Inflamari, Deprimo, Everte Statum, Salvio hexia, Spider repelling spell, Smokescreen Spell, Stunning Spell and the Human-presence-revealing Spell for example. In the Portrait Vault, she was able to cast a powerful Slowing Charm to prevent falling rubble from harming those inside, and cast an exceptionally potent Shield Charm around herself to protect herself from most forms of magical assault during the mission, for which Jacob's siblings and the others could not overcome when they tried to stop her torturing Merula Snyde with offensive spells, showing the great extent of her prowess with charms. Despite being a dark witch, she was able to conjire a corporeal Patronus in the form of a lioness.
• Non-verbal magic: When she taught Jacob's sibling student how to fight spiders, she quickly and wordlessly conjured a spider for the student to practise on. This was further proof of her exemplary magical skills, given the high level of difficulty and precision required in the casting of spells non-verbally.
• 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 specialised in brewing potions that can help victims of curses, as well as healing potions to help recover any injuries gained during her often highly dangerous and unpredictable work.
• 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 mere 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: Having always been on top of her class and with Arithmancy being a required expertise for Curse Breakers, it is evident Rakepick was very adept at this subject and had achieved an excellent score on both her O.W.L and N.E.W.T as well as likely achieving top scores on her schoolwork.
• Flying: Madam Rakepick was a very proficient flyer, particularly in her youth, 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 flyer to do so safely despite being among the most talented flyers in their year, which highlighted Madam Rakepick's skill on a broom.
• Occlumency: Patricia was a highly skilled Occlumens, enough so to repel the masterful Legilimency abilities possessed by Severus Snape and even Snape had to begrudgingly acknowledge her skills in the art. She easily blocked Jacob's sibling from reading anything in her mind.
• Apparition: Being an accomplished adult witch, Rakepick was skilful in Apparition; in 1989, she escaped from the Portrait vault by disapparating away.
• Physical combat skills: Madam Rakepick was known to encourage the infusion of physical combat into one's duelling style, stating she has never believed in putting restrictions on duelling, 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 Chimaera, both of which would, if true, be truly remarkable feats of physical prowess indeed.
• Intelligence: Noted by Severus Snape as "cunning for a Gryffindor", who acknowledged that she was "no fool", Madam Rakepick shown to be very sharp-witted and perspicacious. In addition to always being on top of her class at the school, which would have required a certain theoretical aptitude in addition to her natural ability, she was also clever enough to go toe-to-toe with her former peer on an intellectual level when she was enlisted by Albus Dumbledore, and easily saw through Snape's attempt at using Jacob's sibling to spy on her, and had already according to Snape himself turned some of his own Slytherin students against him by spying on him for her, although he was unaware who. She was also show to be manipulative, tricking Jacob's sibling into breaking into the office of Argus Filch so she could use it as a pretext to enter herself and retrieve a key she needed for her search for the Cursed Vault, having apparently no problem letting the pupil take the fall if they were caught.
• Teaching skills: A highly capable instructor, Madam Rakepick was a competent teacher, having quickly and effectively taught Jacob's sibling how to cast a fully-fledged Shield Charm and later taught the same student, alongside five of their peers, how to safely execute the Blasting Curse. She would later go on to teach Bill Weasley the stunning spell. During the 1987-1989 school year, she occupied the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, and continued to teach her team of hand-picked students she used to help her in her search for the Cursed Vaults useful spells that would be handy if in a dangerous situations.

Possessions

Rakepick's wand

• Wand: Rakepick owned a wand, that was of an unknown length, wand wood and core material. She presumably purchased it from Ollivanders in Diagon Alley, London. She wielded it during her Hogwarts years and her career as both a Curse-Breaker and Hogwarts Professor, and could perform particularly powerful magic with it, including the Dark Arts and the Unforgivable Curses.
• Holster: She owned a holster to hold her wand when not in use, which she wore around her belt.
• Eye of Horus pin: She owned a pin depicting the Eye of Horus (an Ancient Egyptian symbol of good luck and protection), presumably as a protective amulet used in curse-breaking.
• Sickleworth: She owned this Niffler assigned to her by Gringotts Wizarding Bank to burrow underground for treasure in cursed areas. She was very fond of Sickleworth, calling him "sweet". After she apparated out of the Portrait Vault, she abandoned Sickleworth and left him at Hogwarts.

Relationships

Albus Dumbledore

Albus Dumbledore was, at the time of Patricia's arrival at Hogwarts, the school's Head of Transfiguration under then Headmaster Armando Dippet, until he eventually succeeded the latter in said post at some point during her magical education. While it is unknown how he felt about her rebellious streak, a trait for which, seen as it went beyond mere mischief-making, many of his colleagues came to distrust and dislike her for, she was nevertheless a talented student. Impressed with her prodigious gifts, even Professor Dumbledore regarded her an exceptional pupil, speaking highly of her abilities even after her graduation. He welcomed her warmly back to Hogwarts upon inviting her back to the castle to help the staff in their efforts to put a stop to the threat posed to the security of the school and those who dwelled therein by the fabled Cursed Vaults, though it is unknown if he shared Severus Snape's suspicions about her ulterior motives, the latter of whom believed, quite correctly, that Dumbledore trusted her.

Severus Snape

Five years his senior at Hogwarts, Severus Snape met Patricia Rakepick for the first time while they were both still students, and took an immediate dislike to her: Bold as brass and with little regards for school rules, and a member of Gryffindor House to boot, Patricia Rakepick was someone whom Severus would one day compare to his arch-rival during his schooldays, James Potter, another trouble-making Gryffindor. Whilst it is uncertain what he thought of Rakepick's initial claims about the existence of the fabled Cursed Vaults as a student, he did acknowledge that she was remarkably ambitious for a Gryffindor, and by no means stupid. By the time he had replaced Horace Slughorn as the school's Potions Master, Rakepick was already a notable curse-breaker and building her career on eliminating her competition. Wary of her true intentions, when Albus Dumbledore invited her back to help break the curses plaging the school and its denizens, their old rivalry immediately reignited, and Snape immediately went about trying to uncover whatever ulterior motives she might have, suspecting that she wanted to use the vaults to take control of Hogwarts.

From that moment on, it is known that Snape and Rakepick were engaging in a subtle battle of wits, and even used students to spy on one another. Recognising that Rakepick regarded one of the pupils as a potential rival in her quest to find the vaults, and aware how Rakepick dealt with rivals, Snape cleverly had said student serving as his spy to shift her attention over on him to protect the student as a supposed mastermind of the youngster's actions, while also using the ploy as a tool to try and learn what Rakepick was up to and expose her to Dumbledore, the one person whom they knew for a certainty would be able to put a stop to her plot, whatever it might be.

Hogwarts staff

Patricia Rakepick had mixed relationships with the faculty at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. While academically gifted, most of the professors, including both those who taught her in the past and old schoolmates who had joined the staff since she graduated, disliked and distrusted her ever since her formative years as a student for her rebellious nature and frequent rule-breaking.

While there were some exceptions, such as Albus Dumbledore, who was her Transfiguration teacher prior to his appointment as Headmaster of Hogwarts sometime before her fifth year, who never said an ill word about her and merely stated his belief that she was an excellent student, and Silvanus Kettleburn, who remembered her as his best student and even confided in her secrets about the Forbidden Forest and the best way in which to enter in undiscovered, (though he came to suspect she had ulterior motives eventually), most teachers did not think very highly of her. Among these teachers were Rolanda Hooch, whose contempt of Rakepick was such that she outright refused to voice her honest opinion on her in front of her pupils, and Pomona Sprout warned one of her students that Rakepick might be more even dangerous than she appeared at first glance. Filius Flitwick, the Charms Master, preferred for people to make up their own minds about Rakepick, rather than base their own opinion upon his own, and did not comment on it to students. The Keeper of Keys and Grounds at the time, Rubeus Hagrid, also distrusted her, warning Jacob's sibling about the fact that she could be dangerous if crossed. At some point during the 1987-1988 school year, Minerva McGonagall had a very heated argument with Rakepick about "something important", suggesting that the Transfiguration teacher, who presumably began to teach her when Dumbledore rose to the post of Headmaster, also did not think very highly of the younger witch or her methods.

Jacob's sibling

Presumably well aware of the events that lead to the expulsion of former Hogwarts student Jacob long before she ever met his younger sibling, given her own interest in the vaults, Rakepick took interest in the latter individual for their first-hand experience with the Cursed Vaults, and is known to have kept an eye on them, possibly even before she was invited back to Hogwarts by the Headmaster of the day, Albus Dumbledore, to help put the threat of the Cursed Vaults to rest. Though she did not waste any time soliciting the help of said student and their group of friends to make her own, sanctioned search for the vaults easier, and even assured Jacob's sibling she meant them no harm and even were investigating the identity of the mysterious wizard that had attacked them in the Clock Tower Courtyard after curfew by forging a letter with the handwriting of Silvanus Kettleburn. Severus Snape, however, the Potions Master and former schoolmate of Rakepick's, did not trust her at all, going so far as to saying she had ulterior motives for being at Hogwarts and that she was after the Cursed Vaults for her own gain, and quite possibly meant to kill both them and anyone else who stood in her way. Rakepick continued, however, to request the assistance of Jacob's sibling, teaching them the Shield Charm to test their abilities and, getting impressive results, continued to offer guidance, such as lending them her own Niffler to help in the search for clues and eventually teaching them the Spider repelling spell in order to prepare them for a potential fight with Acromantulas.

In the end, however, Snape's suspicions were proven partially correct when she fooled Jacob's sibling into breaking into the office of Argus Filch for a wild goose chase, only to swoop in and retrieve something she herself had been looking for. This eventually left Jacob's sibling uncertain if Rakepick can be trusted or if they are playing right into the hand of their potential enemy. Rakepick did redeem herself for her indiscretions, however, when she saved the life of Jacob's sibling by coming to their rescue just as their attacker was about to deliver the coup de grace, casting a Blasting Curse so powerful that the attacker was blasted backwards, across almost the whole length of the Clocktower Courtyard and into a wall, knocking them out cold. Upon undoing the Disillusionment Charm the attacker was under, they discovered that the person in question was Ben Copper, whom Rakepick transported back into the castle to prevent him from hurting himself or others while Jacob's sibling went after the Forest Vault.

Etymology

The name "Patricia" is a common female given name of Latin origin, and is derived from the Latin word "patrician", meaning "noble", and is the feminine form of the masculine given name Patrick.

The name "Rakepick" is apparently derived from to a type of lock-pick, maybe to highlight her being someone who goes to one place to obtain gold to bring back to her employers.

Behind the scenes

The original character model sheet for Patricia Rakepick

• Patricia Rakepick is the main antagonist in Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery. The secondary antagonist is Merula Snyde and the tertiary antagonists are Ismelda Murk and Severus Snape, though Merula, Ismelda and Snape later became anti-heroes.
• Despite being world-famous, the school's resident social butterfly Penny Haywood did not recognise Rakepick by appearance prior to Dumbledore's introduction.
• 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.
• Rakepick was apparently made an unofficial member of the non-teaching staff at Hogwarts by Dumbledore, seeing how she had the authority to award house points even prior to becoming a teacher.
• Rakepick's character sheet indicates that she was modeled after actresses Cate Blanchett, Lauren Bacall and Julianne Moore.

Appearances

• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery (First appearance)