"Mr. Black," Professor McGonagall said, bringing two individuals with her. "These two have been allotted to you."
Black, standing right at the edge where the Forbidden Forest began, looked at the two shackles gifted to him by Dumbledore.
One was a small girl in an Ilvermorny School uniform.
She had red hair, brown eyes, and a touch of roughness to her appearance, as if she had spent the first ten years of her life in the wilds.
The second person was a bald, old man with black, beady eyes. Looking to be deep in his seventies, he walked with his hands clasped behind him, his back hunched slightly. He was wearing a simple white shirt over yellowish trousers.
Black looked from the two individuals to McGonagall, then toward the two, and then back at the Professor.
McGonagall's lips pressed into a thin line. "If you have a question, then ask."
"Can I…"
"No, you cannot have second picks, Mr. Black," McGonagall retorted, knowing her student quite well. "All candidates have been allotted individuals, handpicked by the Headmaster. No one has received any preferential treatment. Even the second years accepted the individuals allotted to them without making a fuss."
Black threw his hands up. "… Alright," he said. Then, he looked at the girl and the old man and chuckled, "I guess being handsome is not enough around here."
The girl snorted.
The old man amicably smiled.
Professor McGonagall drew a sharp breath as if to say something, but gulped it down. Then, taking a deep breath to calm herself down, she turned around and left, leaving a warning.
"Open your imagination a bit, Mr. Black," McGonagall said, walking away. "We must learn from experiences, no matter how special we are…"
Black's eyes narrowed.
He had a feeling that the old witch wasn't talking about him being special but… the entire magical community.
Black looked over his shoulder and stared into the darkness of the Forbidden Forest.
One unhinged use of Perception, and he could find the number of leaves the entire Forest had.
But, unlike his status as an Item, that would most certainly attract Dumbledore's attention. Not to mention, the two ladies at Hogwarts were constantly keeping an eye on the happenings as well, hoping to find a way to benefit through such a massive Divergence.
Suddenly, Black's eyes lit up with a Lucky Intuition, making his lips curl.
I see… he realized, looking away from the Forest toward the direction where Harry or Darcie could have been. Yeah… that's worthy of becoming a Side Mission… Fucking genius, you are, Dumbledore. Genius…
"You smile a lot."
Black brought his gaze back and looked at the first-year Ilvermorny student. "What's your name?"
"Alex."
"Do you know me, Alex?"
Alex nodded. "Everyone knows you," she said innocently. "Ever since we arrived here, all seniors are talking about a guy at Hogwarts who can defeat Darcie in a duel."
Black's smile broadened. "Defeat?" he said, smugly. "You don't know the half of it. Let me tell you the story of how I broke her arm and sent her crying to the Hospital Wing…"
Alex gasped, instantly looking even more interested in Black than before.
The old Muggle suddenly took a step forward, looking at the two children. "Forgive me, young ones," he asked, "but… who is this Darcie?"
"…"
"…"
…
Darcie looked at a mature woman who was towering over a small boy from Mahoutokoro School of Magic.
Black hair. Blue eyes. White shirt and blue jeans.
"Who are you?" Darcie asked, not unkindly. She didn't want to scare the Muggle, but… the way this woman carried herself suggested something else; as if this woman knew much more than she showed and had hidden intentions… not necessarily in anyone's favor.
With time, Darcie had begun trusting her instincts.
The small smile the tall woman carried on her lips flickered.
"Haha…" She laughed nervously. "Always dreamt of entering into a fantasy land of my own. Like Alice. Who knew it was all true, you know? Magic!"
Darcie continued to look at the woman.
"Alice?" the boy asked in broken English. "What Alice?"
"Alice!" the woman repeated. "Alice in Wonderland? You don't know Alice?!"
The boy shook his head.
Darcie sighed.
"What are your names?" she asked.
The Japanese boy's entire face lifted at that. "Sato," he said cheerily. "Call me Sato… Darcie-San."
"Feel free to talk to me in Japanese if you sense something odd, Sato," Darcie said in perfect Japanese, shocking the living breath out of the boy. Then, she looked toward the woman. "And you?"
"Scarlet," the woman introduced herself.
"Alright," Darcie said, turning around and facing the Forbidden Forest. "Sato, Scarlet, keep yourself close to me. If you hear or see something, do not overreact and just let me know. We will clear this stage easily. Got it?"
Behind Darcie, Scarlet's blue eyes flashed with an invisible, dull-gray color.
As the boy repeatedly nodded, just excited to be paired with Darcie of all people, Scarlet walked forward and… put her hand on Darcie's head, ruffling her hair.
"You are so cute!" Scarlet said, chuckling.
Darcie didn't bother to turn and told the woman to keep her hands to herself, but… two yellow crystals did dance in her eyes as they narrowed, the corners of her lips curling ever so slightly.
…
Harry gulped.
He looked at Astoria, Daphne's sister.
Then, he looked at the silent woman, who had refused to utter a single word since Professor Snape had dropped these two here.
This woman had a doll-like face, with short black hair and black eyes. She was wearing a white T-shirt over blue jeans. Despite her beautiful appearance, there was something wrong with her face… something unnatural.
Harry licked his lips.
He'd thought he would find himself more comfortable with a Muggle tagging along with him than others.
Had he become too used to being a wizard?
"Oi!" Astoria hissed. "Can you not goggle at her boobs?!"
"WHAT?!" Harry's entire face went red. "What are you talking about?! I am NOT looking at her boo… breasts!"
Then, he looked at the woman and found her looking back at him.
"I was not… really…" Harry tried to explain.
BOOM!
The sudden explosion made both Harry and Astoria flinch, the entire sky gaining a red tinge overhead.
"The Hunt—" Dumbledore's voice echoed far and wide, "—begins!"