— Victor, can I go too? — Lilith asked softly when they were left alone.
Victor looked at her with a smile, but that smile didn't make her feel any better. On the contrary, it terrified her even more. She was already regretting that he hadn't allowed Daphne to strike her — right now, she could be resting peacefully in the Hospital Wing.
— I gave you a task. So why do you still have time to mess around?
— Don't worry, everything is going well, they will definitely join you. The entire first year practically worships you because of what you pulled on the train! As for making them submit to me... That takes time. You can't rush something like that, — Lilith replied.
Victor gave an understanding nod. He stood up and slowly approached her, causing the girl to tremble even harder. Lilith hated herself for this weakness, but she couldn't help it: standing before him, she felt completely helpless. Since childhood, despite being physically frail, she was used to keeping everything under control. And after her older sister had sold her off, she had begun taking everything even more seriously. But this guy... He was truly scary. She couldn't do a thing while he did whatever he pleased.
— So this is too easy for you, huh? — Victor surveyed her with a smirk. — You've turned out to be far more capable than I originally thought. Fine then, if you want, you can forget about my task. Try to focus on your studies and don't get cocky because of your abilities. — Victor patted her on the head. — You may go to dinner now. And don't forget: after dinner, I still expect a demonstration of some talent from you.
Lilith, feeling his warm hand on her head, nodded in astonishment.
Seeing that the girl was still staring at him in bewilderment without moving, Victor tilted his head and snapped his fingers right in front of her nose.
— Huh? Ahem... Yes! — She was just about to bolt out in a panic, but froze and looked up at him. — You're... really not mad at me?
Victor laughed:
— What is there for me to be mad about? That you're displaying your true nature? Believe me, I know better than anyone where repressing oneself leads. As long as you don't cross the line, I won't be mad.
Lilith narrowed her eyes thoughtfully:
— And what line is that?
— Well... Slytherin shouldn't lose points because of you, and not a single student should die, — he paused to think for a moment and nodded. — I suppose that's all.
Lilith stared at him in complete shock:
— And that's it?! I thought you'd tell me not to harm your girls or get in your way!
Victor waved his hand dismissively:
— They can take care of themselves. And as for getting in my way... Ha-ha-ha! — He scoffed contemptuously, looking down at her. — Well, you can certainly try. If you manage to harm me in any way, I'll personally teach you how to use Legilimency, which will make you far more dangerous.
— You're not afraid of me? — Lilith asked with a frown, immediately remembering her older sister, who had gotten rid of her out of fear.
— No, I'm not afraid. On the contrary — I'm waiting for you to surprise me. You know, it gets quite dull in this school sometimes.
Lilith looked at him, and for the first time since they had met, her fear vanished. She had always assumed he would get rid of her out of apprehension or keep her on an inescapable leash. A smile slowly began to form on her lips — a genuine smile. It was probably the first time in a very long while that she had smiled so sincerely. It felt like the last time was when her father killed her brother. Without saying another word, she turned lightly and practically skipped out the door.
— Ha-ha-ha, looks like I just created a real headache for myself, — Victor chuckled merrily. — Oh well, I wonder what she'll come up with.
Without changing his expression, Victor suddenly vanished.
— Eek! — Two sudden shrieks rang through the hall, and Victor appeared with his arms draped around Adele's and Luna's necks, pulling their faces close to his.
— Well then, shall we head down to dinner?
— How did you know we were here? — Luna asked with a smile, wrapping her arms around him.
— Don't forget, I was blind for a while, even if briefly. I don't need to see to know you were here, — Victor replied, kissing Adele on the temple.
— So you knew we were here the entire time?! — Adele asked crossly. They had been hiding there for hours, trying not to make a sound. Victor and Daphne had spun so much mystery around Slytherin that they had gotten curious about what he was planning. But it turned out to be just a regular audition. — Why didn't you say so right away? Do you have any idea how much my legs ache! — Adele continued to complain.
— I wanted to see how long you'd last. I didn't expect you to hold out this long.
Victor took them by the hands with a smile and headed toward the exit.
— Victor, is she really that dangerous? — Adele asked as they stepped into the common room.
— Well, not yet. If you figure out that certain thoughts aren't actually yours and put up a bit of mental defense, Lilith becomes a harmless little girl. Of course, you shouldn't forget: even if she can't harm you directly, she's capable of doing so through others.
Adele nodded in understanding and frowned as she looked at Luna. Astoria was foolish because she had been spoiled since childhood, but Luna was even more unique — simply because she was Luna. Adele adopted a serious expression: she decided she would protect her naive friend from Lilith. It wouldn't be any trouble for her to deal with the girl, but Victor had made it clear he wanted to see her "blossom." Adele knew Victor's love for anything interesting, so as long as Lilith didn't harm Luna, she wasn't going to touch her. But if she dared — Adele would turn her life into a living hell.
Victor watched the shifting expressions on his sister's face and shook his head. He glanced at Luna, who was cheerfully swinging his hand, and smiled. He wasn't worried about her in the slightest. To confuse someone's thoughts, that person has to be thinking about something. But Luna... she didn't have ordinary thoughts. If she wanted to do something — she did it; if she wanted to ask — she asked; if she wanted to say — she said it. Victor was certain: if a foreign thought ever popped into her head, she would be genuinely astonished herself, simply because she wouldn't understand what it was.
The next day, their first lesson was Defense Against the Dark Arts. The Slytherins felt a bit out of their element: Victor had ordered them to sabotage Lupin's class in every way possible. If someone like Lockhart were in his place, it wouldn't have been a problem — many of the boys couldn't stand him anyway. But this new professor didn't seem so bad. It was their first lesson with him and they didn't know how he taught yet, but over his first couple of days at school, he had given the impression of a quiet, humble, and polite man.
Thump!
The students flinched as a dull thud echoed from the wardrobe standing in the center of the classroom, making it rattle visibly.
— What do you think is in there? — someone asked.
— Don't know. Should we open it and take a look?
Everyone fell silent, staring at the wardrobe and contemplating the idea: curiosity was getting the better of them.
— What's up, troublemakers! — Everyone flinched again at the sudden shout, but it was just Victor entering the classroom. As usual, Daphne was right behind him.
— Victor, do you know what that is? — one of the Slytherins asked.
— Where?
— Right there, — the student pointed at the wardrobe.
Victor looked at the wardrobe, then raised an eyebrow and shifted his gaze to the boy:
— That... looks like a unique piece of furniture called a "wardrobe." I believe it's a device for storing things, though I'm not entirely sure, we should ask the teacher... Are you an idiot? Have you never seen a wardrobe before?
The students let out quiet sighs and looked at the embarrassed Slytherin with pity.
— Oh, Hermione! How are things? — Victor stopped paying attention to him and turned his focus onto her.
— Victor, — she ground out through her teeth. — Hand it back.
— Hand what back?
Hermione offered no answer and simply held out her hand with a frown.
Victor stared at her palm for a long moment, then placed his own over it, but she immediately slapped his hand away, keeping her palm open demanding manner. Victor pondered for a second, and then enlightenment seemed to strike him: he pulled a sweet from his pocket and placed it in her palm with a smile. Hermione began to boil, the aura around her turning hazardous.
Victor finally surrendered and, with a heavy sigh, pulled out the Time-Turner and placed it in her hand. She finally calmed down, quickly stashing it away, and didn't let go of it for the remainder of the lesson, clutching it tightly through the fabric of her pocket while keeping a constant eye on Victor. Yesterday after dinner, when he had hugged her, he had somehow managed to swipe the Time-Turner hanging around her neck without her even noticing!
Victor turned away in huff. Suddenly, he noticed Ron's pocket moving strangely and expanding...
— Um, Ron? Has your pocket come alive, or did this lesson just get you really excited? If it's the latter, I sincerely feel sorry for your future girlfriend — and I don't envy you one bit. Though actually, maybe I envy you just a tiny, tiny bit.
Ron looked down at his pocket and shook his head:
— No, it's just Scabbers. — He pulled out the rat.
Daphne gave him a strange look:
— Do you always carry your rat in your pocket?
Ron shook his head again and cast an irritated glance at Hermione:
— No, he usually stays in the dormitory. It's just that someone brought a giant ginger monster to school!
Hermione rolled her eyes, completely ignoring his jab. Harry remained silent, deciding not to get involved in their bickering, and merely offered a quiet smile: Ron and Hermione had been arguing over this all morning.
— How could I leave him behind to let that cat torment him? Look at how scared he is, poor thing is still shaking! — Ron lifted the rat and kissed it right on its snout, trying to soothe it.
Victor, who had been watching this scene with interest, suddenly turned pale. His eyes widened.
— Tenebrus!
In an instant, the entire classroom was plunged into pitch-black darkness where you couldn't even see your own hands. Through the gloom, several gruesome roars and wet, squelching noises rang out. When the darkness cleared, the sounds died down as well.
Everyone cast terrified and bewildered looks at Victor, who had cast the spell. His face appeared even paler than usual, and his eyes were slightly teary.
Victor calmly surveyed the room:
— What?
The students hastily turned away, pretending to be busy with their own business.
Daphne took his hand with concern:
— Are you alright?
Victor looked at her calmly:
— Yeah, why?
— Well, you just... — She looked around the floor near him, but found no traces of anything.
— You're imagining things. I was just testing how the spell works, — Victor stated firmly.
He summoned a chair standing near the wall, transfigured it into a plush throne, and sat down on it, casually crossing his legs.
Daphne and Hermione looked at Ron's rat, then exchanged a glance. The exact same brilliant idea struck them both simultaneously — to get themselves a rat. If there was anything in this world capable of thoroughly throwing Victor off balance, they simply had to have it!
Victor, noticing them exchanging glances with a mischievous glint in their eyes, merely rolled his eyes. He realized what they were up to: the girls thought he hated rats. But in reality, he simply knew who that "rat" actually was. Recalling how Ron had just kissed it on the snout, Victor hastily rubbed his temples and shook his head, trying to purge the sickening thought from his memory before he felt nauseous again.
Meanwhile, the classroom was gradually filling up with students. When the bell rang, Professor Lupin stepped inside. The first thing his eyes landed on was Victor, lounging casually on a luxurious throne, and Daphne, comfortably settled on its armrest — and all this while the other students were still standing on their feet.
However, Remus said nothing. Dumbledore had already warned him about Victor's difficult nature and that he might pull a stunt right during class. At first, Lupin hadn't quite understood how he could have crossed the boy, but after thinking it over and remembering which House he belonged to, he realized where the wind was blowing from.
Officially introducing himself to the class, the professor moved on to the topic of the lesson. Noticing the unhidden curiosity with which the students were eyeing the locked wardrobe, he smiled in anticipation.