Challenge

Chapter 15. Challenge

Before Lily could freak out at the sight of the bleeding dead body in her living room, Harry appeared from the thin air. He immediately gazed around with forced calmness, taking everything in.

At last he sighed in relief.

"Good work, Aura. Thank you." He smiled gratefully at the golden eyed cat who gave him a proud meow. It had been her who contacted him telepathically and informed him that she had just killed some 'dangerous man'.

"Mum, are you okay?" He asked, stopping before her and looking at her worriedly.

"I am fine." She mumbled, still a little bit dazed. "I take it that Aura is not an ordinary cat."

"Yes. She is special. I know it must be getting old, but don't ask me any questions. I can't answer you right now. I will tell you all of my secrets after the end of first year. I promise."

Lily stared at him with furrowed brows before nodding in resignation. She wasn't going to aggressively force her son to reveal his secrets. That might do more than just sour their relationship.

"Fine. You can keep your secrets. Now, let me see what my traitorous old friend has in the envelope." Lily shook her head sadly, looking at her dead friend. She thought it was for the best that James wasn't alive anymore, or he might have died again from a broken heart. She dreaded informing Sirius and Remus about this incident. But she would have to. She wouldn't hide the true fate and true face of Peter Pettigrew from his former friends.

She kneeled beside the body and waved her wand at the envelope clutched in its grasp. When she was positively sure that the envelope wasn't a trap or a hidden portkey, she took it and went back to the sofa, plopping down beside Aura. If she hadn't seen enough death and blood in the last war then she might have been overwhelmed by all of this. But unfortunately for her, it wasn't the first time she was attacked by an acquaintance. It wasn't the first time a friend had turned traitor.

She tore the edges of the envelope and found a piece of parchment inside. She took it out and unfolded it to see a brief note written on it. Harry was standing beside her, leaning forward, staring intensely at the letter.

To,

Harry Potter.

On 31st October, the next Samhain, I will seek you again and will check how far you have progressed. I have already killed your sister, little one. And now I have killed your mother too. From now on, you are an orphan with no weakness to exploit. Will this break you or will it make you stronger? I will be eager to see that. Don't disappoint me.

Your teacher,

Lord Voldemort.

QUEST:

– Survive the challenge.

REWARD:

– 3000 XP

– Perk [?]

Well, there was his next hurdle. It seemed he wasn't going to get a break from the constant torment of Voldemort anytime soon. How he wished he was strong enough to be done with that bastard.

Still, he would be careful and patient. While this quest basically told him that he wouldn't need to face Voldemort until Halloween, it didn't guarantee that the dark lord wouldn't send any more minions to remove Harry's 'weaknesses'. He would need to be more alert to keep them safe. Although he had the power to resurrect them if the worst happened, he wouldn't let them die in the first place. He wouldn't be a failure again. He wouldn't be weak.

Lily was trembling in fright and her face paled rapidly. This was more than enough proof to safely say that Voldemort was indeed alive and not dead. And if that wasn't enough, he had taken a special interest in her son. She couldn't stop herself from imagining the worst case scenarios.

What if Voldemort really attacked Harry on the next Halloween? What if Harry gets hurt or worse, dead? How was she to protect him when her power compared to the Dark Lord was nothing? What was she supposed to do? How was she to keep her children safe?

She was aware how her heart was pounding in her chest and how her breaths were coming in short gasps. But that didn't help her in stopping it, in controlling it.

"Mum! It's okay. I am fine. Look at me." Harry stooped over her, cupping her face and staring at her resolutely.

"Everything is fine. We still have more than enough time to think about this. Don't worry, I will take care of it. Calm down. Breathe. In and out. Breathe." Harry said softly, reassuringly as he kept looking in her eyes, trying to make her feel better.

She nodded shakily and pulled him down beside her, clutching him to her side, hugging him close, yelling in her mind that her son was still safe, that the Dark Lord hadn't taken him yet.

A part of her felt so bad that her son had to stay cool in this terrible situation while she was losing her mind. He was acting like a parent while she was being a scared child. She was proud that he was so mature and unflappable, but the guilt clawed at her conscience for showing such weakness in front of him. For acting like this when it should be her comforting him. She should be the pillar of safety here instead of a pool of despair.

"Voldemort sure is behind the times if he still believes that Iris is dead. Good for us, I guess." Harry suddenly chuckled.

Lily didn't join in. She was feeling far too much fear and guilt to look at the bright side.

"Mum, I know that you think we are screwed. But believe me, we are not. You will know why I am so confident after I tell you my secret and my plan." Harry said gently as he rubbed her back and tried to pull back. The key word here was 'tried' since Lily refused to un-clutch him, as if he would disappear if he wasn't in her safe grasp. Harry sighed and snuggled against her, making himself comfortable.

"So, the weather is good, no? And how is life? It's been a while since we last saw each other. How's your son? I have heard many good things about him." Harry said blandly, nuzzling her face and pulling her out of her dark reverie.

Lily's heart lightened at his ridiculous try at conversation. A small smile tugged on her lips as the all consuming panic slowly started receding away, as the rationality and the defiance kicked in.

She just gave him a deadpan look as a response.

"Hmm. I know you are mum. But don't be mum now. Talk to me. Amuse me. That's the least you can do after keeping me prisoner here." Harry quipped, looking smugly at her.

"What was that? A joke?" She couldn't help but groan lightly.

"Everyone's a critic nowadays. I am no Sirius Black, sorry for disappointing you with my unfunny jokes, mum mum. I hope you won't put me in an orphanage for such a big blunder, mum mum." Harry grumbled good naturedly, his eyes shining proudly as her smile kept on growing at his ridiculousness.

"If you keep calling me mum mum then I may be tempted to consider kicking you out of the house." She chuckled briefly, ruffling his hair fondly.

Had she ever confessed to herself how perfect her children were? Only a million times, but it still felt inadequate.

They remained silent for a few seconds after that, just bathing in the comfort of their shared embrace.

"Are you okay now?" He asked, breaking the silence.

She smiled, nodding and kissing the top of his head.

"I am. Thank you, Harry. I will put my trust in your secret for now. I hope it can save us or we might have to go full muggle and leave the Wizarding World behind. I am not going to take any risks. And if to save you we need to abandon magic then we will." Lily answered tiredly. At least now she had a backup plan if nothing worked.

"It won't come to that. Believe in me. Now let me go so I could be off to Hogwarts and hope that no Professors noticed my absence. It was fortunate that I wasn't in any class when I was forced to come here." Harry promised, squirming in her arms before she let him go.

"Okay. Take care, Harry. And take care of Iris too."

"You don't have to ask. Taking care of Iris is my unfortunate full-time job."

"I like to think that you enjoy that job." She said with a smile and stood up, adjusting his rumpled clothes.

"I actually do. Don't tell her though, it's a secret, but I love her very very much." Harry whispered dramatically as he put the body of Peter Pettigrew in his inventory and vanished all the blood. No need to waste a perfect dead body. Who knows when he might need it for Necromancy rituals or something.

"Sure. I will keep mum." She grinned, making the motion of zipping her lips. Harry gave her a proud look for continuing the joke.

"There is still hope for you yet. Goodbye, mum."

"Goodbye, love."

~xXxXx~

As soon as Harry teleported back to Hogwarts, he sought out the privacy of the Room of Requirement. He changed his Class back to Necromancer since he couldn't use the required skills associated with it while being a Mage.

Then he activated [Soul Searcher] and brought back the soul of Peter Pettigrew.

A golden globe of light lifted through the floor and hung in the midair before taking a humanoid shape.

"What— why am I like this? What happened to me?" Peter shrieked in panic. His three piece suit was in tatters, his sleeve torn off, showing the hideous dark mark. He looked as if he hadn't slept in forever with dark bags under his eyes and pale sallow skin.

"Where is Voldemort?" Harry asked stonily, standing in front of him, getting right to the point.

A black snakelike tendril of smoke wrapped around the ethereal form of Peter Pettigrew at his command.

"He is in his fortress in the Albanian forest." Peter gulped down nervously and answered truthfully, not that he had any other choice.

"Why did he send you to the Potter Manor?"

Peter stammered fearfully. "To kill Lily Potter."

"I see. Would you have done that? Would you have really killed your best friend's wife?" Harry enquired with a blank emotionless face.

"Yes. I would have killed her after having some fun with her." Peter couldn't stop being honest even when he wanted to.

Harry's blank expression somehow still remained even when all he wanted to do was bring him back to life and kill him with his very own hands.

"How is Voldemort alive?" He asked instead, suppressing his rage.

"I don't know."

"How many people are working under him? What are their names? What are Voldemort's goals?"

"Currently, no one. Master works alone now. Only I was aware where he was and only I was allowed to be with him. And I haven't been told what my master's goals are." Peter responded candidly.

Harry stared at him contemptuously.

"Fine. Go back to whatever hell is waiting for you on the other side." Harry said, flicking his hand disdainfully.

If Lily was present here, she would have questioned Peter why he betrayed them, she would have asked him how he survived and hid his identity, but Harry wasn't interested. He didn't know the man and had only heard of him in passing.

"Don't! Please keep me here some more. I don't want to go. Please!" Peter pleaded desperately before his ethereal figure imploded into numerous particles of golden dust which then promptly disappeared.

Harry sat down in an armchair conjured by the Room of Requirement. This abrupt meeting didn't give him much new information, but just confirmed his earlier suspicions.

Voldemort was alive in some form and had his own fortress in a foreign land. And he was tremendously more powerful than him. Which really sucked. If it wasn't the case then he might have gone on offensive and nipped the bud before it grew to become a thorny flower.

Now, he had to focus his time on quests and on becoming stronger to fight against the dark lord.

But what troubled him most was this new quest. Because the wording of it gave him a reason to believe that the face-off next year wouldn't be the final confrontation between them. That it was just another battle in their destined war. Otherwise there wouldn't have been any need for the system to issue a new quest when an old quest was already pending regarding Voldemort.

He checked his old quests which he still hadn't been able to finish.

QUEST:

– Kill Voldemort.

REWARD:

– 10,000 XP

– Perk [?]

This quest would be the end of the reign of Voldemort. This would be the last fight. The last confrontation which would stop him for once and all.

This other unfinished quest was also a very important one. Obviously.

QUEST:

– Find the three Deathly Hallows.

The Invisibility Cloak: In possession

The Elder Wand:

The Resurrection Stone:

REWARD:

– 20,000 XP.

– Perk: [Immortality]

If he had a choice then he would like to finish the immortality quest before he had to fight Voldemort. But he had a gut feeling that these two quests were connected and that he had to destroy Voldemort first to advance in the immortality quest.

He slumped back in the chair and closed his eyes. He would win. He had to. There was no other choice.

"Dai Deam, go to Albania discreetly and try to find more information about the Dark Lord. Be on your guard and come back to me as soon as you have any kind of lead. And don't get caught at any cost."

His most powerful undead appeared before him, bowing and then disappearing, to do as ordered. Actually, Dai Deam wasn't his most powerful undead anymore. That position was now occupied by the dead Voldemort of the other world.

While it might be funny to send one Voldemort to spy on the other, it was quite risky with no rewards other than his amusement.

But he wasn't powerful enough to risk things for his entertainment. At least not yet.

~xXxXx~

Iris was leaning on her elbows, which were placed on the table, in the library. A single long parchment was lying between the space of her hands. She had her face scrunched in concentration as she memorised the theory of the Repairing charm. She was forced to do this chore because there was a small Charms test the next day.

Harry sat on her right with his chin laid atop his folded hands over the table. He had already prepared for the test, as always, being a gamer had its benefits and memorising wasn't even a hard task. He looked around him, at his friends who were busy in their preparation.

Daphne sat on his right, calmly looking down in her book. Her forefinger tracing the text as she read it in her mind. Neville sat opposite Iris, barely hiding his scowl while he gazed in the book. Hermione beside him was frantically going through the page, her lips moving silently as she memorised it. And the last of their group, Tracey, downright glared at the book as her patience dwindled and the pin drop silence irritated her to no end.

"Enough! Let's go outside and play in the snow." She whispered angrily, shutting off her book.

Iris, happy that someone understood her pain, whispered back. "Yes! Brilliant idea. I can't stay quiet and study one more minute."

"It's been only 10 minutes since we started, sister. Don't act like we have been here for hours." Harry drawled lazily, sitting up properly and stretching his arms above his head.

"Really?" Both Tracey and Iris gasped in surprise, not able to believe that it had been just 10 minutes. It felt like eternity.

"Still, I think we need a break, Harry. The girls are right. We should go out and play." Neville received beaming smiles from the two girls for his support.

Hermione glared at her weak willed friends. "No! We are not moving until we are done here."

"Come on, Hermione. Don't be like that. I am sure you are already done and are just revising for the tenth time." Tracey grumbled.

"Fifth time, not tenth." Hermione corrected condescendingly. "But it's not about me, it's about you. Have you finished preparing for the test?"

"Why not vote? Those who want to go outside and play, raise your hand." Iris interrupted before those two started bickering. She instantly raised her own hand followed by Tracey and Neville.

"I am in since I am done with my work anyway." Harry agreed, raising his hand. He nudged Daphne with his elbow who was still studying, apparently unaware of the whispered conversation going on around her.

"Do you want to go play or stay and continue reading?" He asked.

Before she could answer, Tracey half climbed the table from across and took her hands in hers and gave her her best puppy look.

"Let's go play, Daphne. Please."

Daphne shrugged with a fond smile. "Fine. If that's what you want."

Hermione just shook her head seeing how she was outvoted.

"If everyone wants to go out then I am coming too. I have done my test preparations already."

~xXxXx~

The grounds outside were layered with soft white snow. They left shallow foot imprints as the group walked towards the frozen lake. The air was chilly and the sky was overtaken by giant formless grey clouds. They all were in their winter garbs to shield themselves from the chilly winds.

As soon as the frozen lake came in view, Tracey and Iris ran excitedly towards it, racing against each other with boisterous laughter. The others too abandoned their strolling and jogged behind them. They stopped at the sight of Tracey and Iris reluctantly backing away from the edge of the lake.

"The ice here isn't thick enough to bear our weight. I guess ice-skating is not an option." Iris complained, incensed.

"Of course. The weather will be getting warmer now. Winter is almost over. This may be the last snowfall of the season." Hermione informed them with a shrug.

"So, what do we do now? Tracey, you dragged us here. What's in your mind?" asked Harry.

Tracey's lips spread in a wide grin as she crouched down and scooped up some snow, moulding it round.

"We, my dear friends, shall endeavour to continue the age-old tradition of pelting each other with snow to show our deepest affection." She said pompously and threw it directly at Harry who just turned sideways to miss the snowball. The snow sailed away harmlessly to much chagrin of Tracey.

"Fine, dear Tracey. You have called war and we will fight a war instead of brawling like some barbarians. We shall make a team and see whose team wins. The losers have to carry the winners to the castle on their backs. How about that?" Harry announced with a matching grin.

"Fine." She huffed and crossed her arms. "We should choose our teams now. I choose Iris. Your turn."

Iris slung her arm around Tracey's neck and shot him a competitive glare.

"I choose Daphne." Harry said with a smirk, wrapping his arm around the blonde who just sighed at her friends' antics.

"I choose Neville." Tracey yelled giddily. The other boy ran to their side. He too was sporting an eager smile.

"I choose Hermione." Harry declared, pulling the said girl to his side.

Hermione herself wasn't interested in participating in this 'childish and immature' play, but the happy looks of her friends made it hard to step out. She sighed, things she had to sacrifice for her friends. And no, she definitely wasn't smiling giddily at the prospect of being able to play with her friends. Absolutely not.

"Great. Teams have been chosen. Now how will we decide the winners?" Tracey questioned him as the two teams faced each other.

"The team loses when all the three members are hit by a snowball. We will do a best of five to prolong the game. Whichever team wins the most out of five rounds wins the game." Harry supplied and they began walking backwards to create some distance between them.

On their one side was the Great Lake and on their other side was the fringe of the woods. They also drew clear boundaries with a stick that crossing it would disqualify the players. The game would become tedious if they kept running away.

"Hermione, are you fine with the responsibility of making the snowballs?" Harry asked as they stood alertly.

"Yes." Hermione answered quickly and kneeled on the ground, her hands already digging in the snow.

"Great! Daphne and I will take care of them." He grinned and nodded at Daphne. They too squatted down and made snowballs.

Five minutes later when enough snow balls had been made, the game started without much fanfare.

Harry hurled one at Tracey whose eyes widened in disbelief at the speed the projectile was thrown at her. She would have been done there and then if not for Iris who pulled her aside.

"Don't get carried away, Harry. I would like to keep our friends alive for some more years." Iris chidded.

"Sorry!" Harry yelled back sheepishly.

In the excitement of the game, he almost forgot to keep his monstrous strength in check. He was ridiculously more powerful and quicker than his friends. Only Iris was the one who could even dodge his snowballs. That too only barely. And with that realisation, he heaved a disappointed sigh. The game wasn't going to be fun if he took out all of them so swiftly and effortlessly.

"Iris! We two shall play defence and leave the offence to Daphne and Tracey." Harry suggested as he easily ducked a throw by Tracey.

"Okay!" Iris replied, shooting one ball at him. He just batted it away with his hand.

Their roles decided, the players took their positions. Neville and Hermione sat behind their teammates, quickly making snowballs. Harry and Iris stood a little ahead of them to keep them safe. Tracey and Daphne stood forefront, the main attackers of their respective teams.

And then all hell broke loose.

Tracey and Daphne kept shooting at each other. Hermione and Neville kept supplying them with more ammunition. Iris and Harry had the hardest job to bat away the stray balls from colliding with their snowball makers. But they did it admiringly with their better reflexes and sturdy bodies.

They both looked on in surprise at how elegantly Daphne moved. She danced between the projectiles and made no noise as if she was barely touching the ground. Her throws were always correct, always on the path towards her opponents' heads. It was just her bad luck that Iris was far more powerful and quicker than her, jumping before her teammates and batting away the snowballs.

Daphne's eyes narrowed and her shooting frequency increased exponentially. Even Iris couldn't be everywhere to save her teammates. One by one, Tracey and Neville fell when freezing snow slammed against their faces.

"What type of demon are you!" Iris whined loudly as she dodged and jumped to keep away from Daphne's snowballs. Harry and Hermione too joined in the fun and Iris went down quickly after that.

"We won!" Daphne cheered happily, jumping in his arms, rocking back and forth and blushing when she stepped back. Even in this cold weather, sweat covered her face and her pale cheeks were red from exertion. Her blue eyes glowed from joy and her normal stoic face was filled with pride. Harry couldn't help, but grin at her cute and beautiful expression.

"Yep. All thanks to you." Harry laughed, patting her back and moving towards Hermione and congratulating her too for her help.

"Don't count your chickens before they are hatched. There are four more rounds to play." Tracey interrupted their celebrations with Iris glowering beside her.

The results were in fact the same after the next four rounds. The end score was 5 — 0 in favour of Harry's team.

Tracey and Iris were lying on their backs, panting loudly with red sweaty faces. Though it might be just the melted snow instead of sweat with how many headshots Daphne had committed.

"You are a fucking demon, Daphne. And that's kind of cool." Iris moaned in discomfort as she rose to her feet.

"Language, Iris." "Language, sister."

Both Harry and Hermione rebuked mildly.

"Sorry, mom and dad." Iris rolled her eyes and dusted off her clothes. She helped Tracey to her wobbling feet.

"I don't think I can even walk back to the castle. Carrying one of you on my back might just kill me." Tracey groaned, hanging onto Iris.

Harry chuckled, declaring grandly "Fine. In the light of your three's incompetency, I cancel the reward."

"I want to punch you in your smug face, but don't have the energy." Tracey groused under her breath.

"Since you all are so tired, we should go back. Honestly, I can go a hundred more rounds." Harry smirked triumphantly.

Tracey challenged him with a sly smile. "Well, Mr. Energetic, why don't you carry me since you are so full of vigour?"

"I am not falling for that trick, Tracey. I am not carrying you when it should be the exact opposite. I am not an idiot." Harry said dryly.

"Please. I am really tired. You are my friend, right? Shouldn't friends help each other in their time of need?" Tracey drew close to him and shot him her best pleading look. And she did genuinely look dead on her feet.

…

"Fine." Harry sighed after a few seconds as Tracey happily climbed on his back and wrapped her arms and legs around his neck and waist. She sighed in comfort, resting her face on his shoulder.

"You are my bestest friend after Daphne, Harry. You have my eternal friendship for such a kind act." Tracey laughed, rubbing her face on his cheek.

"Yeah, yeah, don't need to butter me up. I won't drop you."

"Carry me, too." Iris suddenly moved before him and opened her arms.

He gave her a confused look. "Really? I am pretty sure you are not nearly as tired as Tracey. You are fit unlike this lazy girl."

"It doesn't matter. Carry me, brother." She demanded childishly with puffed up cheeks. And damn if he wouldn't give his limbs and organs to see that cute look more often.

"And how do you think I can do that when Tracey has already occupied my back?" He asked with a raised eyebrow, suppressing his urge to squeal like a fanboy as he poked her ballooned cheeks.

"Simple. You are strong enough to carry me in a princess carry while Tracey rides on your back." She explained, shaking excitedly.

"Wow. Yes. Do it, Harry. Show your mighty strength." Tracey exclaimed, egging him on, squeezing him, challenging him.

"I advise you against it, Harry. While you are tall and arguably physically strongest among us, the weight of two people will surely make you fall." Hermione reasoned against them.

Meanwhile, Daphne and Neville, the less talkative ones of the group, just enjoyed the show with mirthful smiles.

"Brother, please." Iris requested bewitchingly.

Harry, against his better judgement, picked her up in princess carry and began the short march towards the castle.

Iris and Tracey giggled amongst them as they were given the royal treatment.

"Someone tell me why am I carrying these two morons even when they lost and I won? I should be the one getting a ride." Harry complained as the group sauntered through the ground.

"You give in to the girls' demands too easily, mate. That's your simple explanation." Neville laughed beside him.

"Exactly." Hermione agreed with an exasperated huff.

"Don't listen to them, Harry. You are doing it because you love us and can't see us trudging through the brutal snow helplessly. You are the angel for us innocent maidens." Tracey smiled charmingly and kissed his cheek.

"Yes, brother. Same thing." Iris cheered though she thought Tracey was going too far calling Harry an angel. He definitely wasn't.

"I can understand about Tracey because she is really tired, but what about you Iris? Why are you being a lazy brat?" Harry enquired curiously.

"Heh, I just wanted you to princess carry me. That's a good enough reason." Iris laughed in answer.

Harry, rolling his eyes affectionately, continued his burdened walk, not minding it in the least.

~xXxXx~

The atmosphere was tense in the living room of the Potter Manor.

Lily, Alice Longbottom and Proserpina Greengrass, sat on one sofa while Remus Lupin and Sirius Black alighted on the cushioned chairs in front of them.

The small talk and the reunion among friends had concluded, leaving them with the excitement and apprehension for the main reason for their abrupt meeting. It wasn't everyday that they met. They were far too busy with their own lives to give each other time. So, something big must have happened or else Lily wouldn't have summoned them so urgently.

"What made you request this meeting, Lily? What was so important that I had to leave my important business behind and come running here?" Sirius began, not exactly thrilled that he wasn't in the Caribbeans anymore. His tanned skin showed what 'important business' he was talking about.

Remus beside him too displayed the sunburned skin, confirming that he had been with him. Not that it was a massive surprise, the surviving two Marauders always seemed to be together.

"And what important work were you doing there, Siri?" Alice, the beautiful black haired and blue eyed woman, snorted in disbelief, already having an inkling about his 'business'. She was proven correct the next moment.

A proud grin grew on Sirius' face and Remus just sighed, already knowing what stupid thing would come out of his friend's mouth. It was uncanny how used to Sirius' mentality he was.

"Actually, I wasn't doing something rather I was doing someone. Hmm! Her chocolate skin, her big round bazongas and large bubbly rump, her pink—" Remus smacked his head in a long suffering manner, pulling Sirius out of his daydream.

"You are a scoundrel, Mr. Black." Proserpina smiled coldly.

Sirius chuckled, wiping off the drool from his mouth. "And you are so hurtful, Proserpina. How many times do I have to remind you to call me Sirius?"

Proserpina didn't even deem his question a response and remained quiet, just smiling at him emotionlessly which her eldest daughter had inherited and mastered.

"Voldemort is alive." Lily interrupted before her friends could go back to ribbing each other. The others looked at her with mild surprise.

"We all have heard rumours like that many times in the last decade, Lily. Are you sure this isn't another one of those and is real for this time?" Remus asked ambivalently.

"Yes I am sure. Here, read this." Lily announced confidently and passed the small note to Alice beside her.

Alice gasped and read it aloud.

To,

Harry Potter.

On 31st October, the next Samhain, I will seek you again and will check how far you have progressed. I have already killed your sister, little one. And now I have killed your mother too. From now on, you are an orphan with no weakness to exploit. Will this break you or will it make you stronger? I will be eager to see that. Don't disappoint me.

Your teacher,

Lord Voldemort.

"This note was carried here by Peter Pettigrew himself." Lily dropped another bomb before they could digest the given information.

"Lily, start from the beginning." Sirius stared at her somberly, unusually, without swearing or cracking jokes.

Lily told them as much as she could. She revealed the truth of what happened on Halloween night at Hogwarts though she still didn't mention that Harry resurrected his sister. She let them believe that Iris recovered miraculously by herself. She also avoided telling them that Harry killed Quirrell first which brought the attention of Voldemort on him.

Her allies listened to her attentively.

Although she was paranoid, she still trusted in the people present there with her life. These men and women were with her from the beginning and would be with her till the end. If she couldn't trust them then she couldn't trust anyone.

"You killed Peter when he attacked you." Alice repeated after the redhead had finished her tale.

Lily nodded.

"And you also took care of the body. Because why not?" Sirius grumbled.

She nodded reluctantly again.

"You do understand how unbelievable this sounds, right?" Proserpina asked frankly as they all stared at Lily.

"Yes, I know. But you have to trust me. We need to get back in shape if we want to protect our children. There is a storm brewing on the horizon, believe it or not. And even if you think I am lying, what harm would it cause if we became alert and sharpened our dull fighting skills. We have to get back in shape." Lily answered annoyedly, trying not to snap at their doubt.

"Ha! I am already in shape. I have been doing so much special Cardio in the last decade that I haven't gained even a single pound." Sirius chuckled, distracting himself from thinking about his supposed backstabbing friend.

"You can simply call it sex, Sirius. You don't have to use euphemisms here. No one here is a chil— oh, I forgot, you in fact are an immature brat." Alice said exasperatedly.

Remus looked at Lily intensely, trying to picture scenarios where she was lying to them. He knew her well. She was one of his closest friends and had helped him out of many sticky situations. Still, to brand Peter as traitor didn't sit right with him.

In the end, he shook his head. It didn't matter if Peter died by Lily's hands or Death Eater's hands. The fact remained that he was dead. "Fine. We will start preparing for a war. But right now we need time to get over the fact that our Peter was an enemy. Come on, Sirius. I know a perfect bar for a drink."

"Fantastic! I am in a terrible need of booze and boobs. They make me think creatively. Let's go." Sirius smiled tartly and stood up, following Remus through the floo.

"Goodbye, Lils. Don't be shy and ask for my service if you ever need a good fucking. I can't understand how you and Alice are still functioning with that decade old dry spell. I would have gone mad by now in your place. Not that it has helped my sanity much, I am crazy already. Though at least I got the pleasure which is more than you two ever got." He grinned sardonically, ducking under the fireplace before she could curse him.

Lily glared angrily at the green fire where he wasn't anymore. If he wasn't her friend and she wasn't used to his flirting, she would have definitely been tempted to hurt him.

Only the women remained now.

"I too will prepare myself and will keep up with my informants. The Dark Lord will pay for his crimes this time if he really has risen. He will pay for ruining my husband. Goodbye for now. Lily. Alice." Proserpina Greengrass got on her feet and vanished into the floo.

Tim Greengrass had suffered the worst at the end of the last war. He had injured his head severely. So badly that he became blind and schizophrenic. The lack of sight had only turned his schizophrenia even worse. He barely left his bedroom nowadays and only Proserpina was able to deal with him and his sickness.

Daphne and Astoria were practically fatherless. They had been since the beginning.

"Don't worry, Lils. We will be here for you. Nothing will happen to Harry. Nothing." Alice hugged her best friend and gave her a soft squeeze before pulling back.

"Yes. I hope so, Alice. I can't bear to lose my children."

"You won't have to."

~xXxXx~

In mid April, something strange was going to happen. Something extraordinary was going to take place. And it all centred around a certain blonde haired girl.

Daphne and Tracey had sat with their friends on Gryffindor table and had enjoyed a fun dinner. They still had small content smiles as they entered the Slytherin common room. Though it vanished quickly when they looked at their fellow housemates.

All the Prefects and other important older students stood before them, as if they were waiting for someone. The air was heavy with tension and the others crowded around the walls and the corners, whispering excitedly as if some spectacular show was going to take place.

"Miss Greengrass. Miss Davis. Come, be in the centre of the room." The self-proclaimed leader of Slytherin, Regina Gloud, ordered them. She was a tall noble looking seventh-year girl with dark brown plaited hair and malicious grey eyes.

The aforementioned first-year girls stepped forward, thickly surrounded by their Hogwarts 'family' who were more hyenas and vultures than a family. Tracey was pale and trembling while Daphne had her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Yes? What is the meaning of this?" She asked bravely.

"This, Miss Greengrass, is a public trial. You and Miss Davis are accused of breaking the standard rules of Slytherin house. Did you show disunity with your fellow Slytherin members? Did you favour members of other houses over your own publically? Yes or no?" Regina smiled, her eyes gleaming with sadistic amusement.

Daphne tried to recall if that was true or not. Well, she did take Harry's side when there was a confrontation between him and Draco Malfoy yesterday. But that was a very minor thing. Was this all because of that? She looked at her fellow blonde and saw him preening among his friends. That obviously answered her question.

"I see. So, the incident with Draco caused this. Hmm, what exactly is the punishment?" She questioned frostily, grabbing Tracey's hand and squeezing it soothingly.

"We, the house of Slytherin, think that you must stop mingling with the enemies. Your so-called friends aren't suitable for the people of your station. That is just a friendly suggestion of course. As for your punishment, you both will serve Mr. Malfoy for a whole week. You will do whatever he asks." The queen of the Slytherin smirked as she finished her monologue.

"No, thank you. We won't be doing any of that." Daphne uttered smoothly and began dragging Tracey away, towards their rooms.

Regina stepped in their way with crossed arms and clear annoyance etched on her face. "That wasn't a choice, Miss Greengrass. You will do what you are asked to or else…"

"Shut up, peasant. Who do you think you are to order me to do anything? I am Daphne Greengrass and I don't follow anyone's orders. Definitely not the orders of a pest like you." Daphne muttered, glaring venomously at the older girl. Even though she hadn't raised her voice, everyone heard her and an uneasy silence fell in the common room.

Regina chuckled condescendingly and snapped her fingers. "My, my, we have an arrogant child in our house. I think we should teach her to respect her betters."

Two seventh-year boys moved towards them and restrained the two first-year girls by holding their arms behind. They then lifted them up by the nape of their necks.

"You should have stopped when I gave you the chance." Daphne mumbled under her breath, hanging in the midair.

No one took her seriously as the whole Slytherin house laughed and jeered at them. Tracey was frozen in fear as she was bombarded with slurs and mocking laughter. Regina took extra pleasure at their sorry situation.

" Enough. Put us down!" Daphne finally yelled. The two boys followed her orders instantly and dropped them back on their feet. There was just something so powerful and intimidating about her voice that they couldn't fight against their instinctive responses.

There was no more laughter. Everyone watched mesmerizingly as Daphne walked up to Regina and punched her in the nose. The older girl's nose broke and blood spurted out from her nostrils.

"Ow!" Regina cried, squatting down and holding her face with teary eyes. A kick to the back of her head sent her sprawling forward on her stomach.

Daphne pressed her foot on her head, forcing her to scrub her face on the floor. "Listen, pest. At the time your ancestors learned how to properly eat and fuck, my people already had learned the intricacies of the magic. They were the wise lords of the world. They were the rulers of the wild. Even these stupid sacred 28 families were barely apes with shite for brain at those early times. I am Daphne Greengrass. I am the descendant of the Clan of Atros. Maybe you have forgotten your history and myths, but I haven't. You and everyone here is nothing, but dust in front of me. So, ignore me and I shall ignore you. Attack me and I will fucking kill you. Respect your betters, you said. Do that. I am your fucking better."

Everyone was gaping at her boldness as she then stepped over the quivering older girl and climbed towards her room. "Come on, Tracey. What are you waiting for?"

~xXxXx~

OMAKE

"Daphne, you used the f-word so many times. I don't think you are a good influence on little Tori. You should be punished too." That was the first thing Tracey had said when they were alone in her room.

"Hmm." Daphne ignored her and changed her clothes.