Lillian coughed as she tried to open her eyes, before the smoke filling the room made her cough even harder. Turning over, she looked at her surroundings through squinted, watery eyes, not recognizing where she was. Except… she did. This was her room in her family's home. Feeling around for a cloth to cover her face to block out the smoke, she frowned as she found the familiar feeling of the Potter Invisibility Cloak. She had carried the cloak with her when she went to carry out the ritual spell that would… send her back in time. Covering her face with the cloak, she looked around again, seeing as smoke entered the room through the open door. Closing it quickly gave her a moment to breathe, before she was instantly drawn to her bedside table, looking at a picture that rested next to a pocket watch, stepping past a snapped wand. The frame showed her playing with a Schattenwolf cub as her parents looked on, her red hair tied in a braid but looking gray due to the lack of color on the photograph. Except Lillian never lived with her parents and she didn't have red hair. Voldemort had killed the-… Images suddenly assaulted Lillian as she watched the events of 1981, reliving the fragmented memory of the night she and Neville were attacked as one year olds. The memory shifted, showing a dark haired woman dressed in black and wearing a familiar looking uniform before she aimed her wand at Lilith's head and cast the Killing Curse.
Lilith… Lilith von Schwarzwald. That was her name. Except her name was also Lillian Potter. Lilith gripped her head in pain before hearing a loud, groaning sound that seemed to emanate from all around her. She felt the floor beneath her buckle and tip down slightly, her face being blasted with smoke once more. Gripping the cloak and catching the pocket watch that slipped from the top of the tipped bedside table, Lilith closed her eyes and thought about the one place she could think of that was safe for her to be at this moment in time. After her seventeenth birthday, she had checked out what she could inherit and the properties that came with the inheritance, with the help of the Goblins of Gringotts. One particular property had stood out to her. Abandoned and kept in stasis, the Peverell Estate in the Welsh countryside had been surprisingly massive. It was in need of a lot of love and care but Lillian had been planning to work on it as soon as she was free from Hogwarts and away from the current conflict. With the von Schwarzwald Manor going up in flames, the derelict Peverell Ancestral Home seemed like an appropriate place to seek shelter until she could figure out what was going on. Feeling the massive drain on her magic that such a long distance Apparition would require, followed by the familiar sensation of being sucked into straw, Lilith thought she was safe. The moment she felt her feet touch the ground, with wards wrapping around her, pressing her into the ground and binding her in place as she appeared within the Peverell Manor, she sighed in resignation. Typical.
Finding herself in the familiar looking library of the Peverell Estate, she frowned as she looked around. The place… looked clean. That wasn't right. The Peverells had been extinct for centuries. Did she screw up the ritual or did she get dumped out in the twelfth century after apparating? The sound of heavy footsteps stopping just outside of her range of sight stilled her errant thoughts. "Who are you? How did you know about this place?" Lillian tried to answer but her thoughts were suddenly jumbled. Did Lilith have any relations to the Peverells? Would it be safe to tell this person about Lillian going back in time? Lilith bit her cheek, getting her mind to focus on the pain before she spoke up. "I… was told about this place… by Gringotts. They said I could inherit it by birthright. That it was abandoned." The footsteps came closer. "I highly doubt that. Lothbrok and I are well acquainted and he knows not to reveal anything regarding the family's assets. Try again." Lilith tried to think on what to say, trying her best not to give anything important away. "Look… my family was just attacked… by Grindelwald's soldiers. I was the only one to get out. This place was supposed to be safe and abandoned. I don't know who you are." Two pairs of boots stopped right in front of her as the man bent down and lifted her up by her shirt. Two bright blue eyes stared back at her. "What… is… your… name?"
Lilith swallowed as she thought that maybe telling this guy the truth might be worth it, if it saved her from dying this instant, since dying right now would definitely make her whole trip through time pointless. "My name's Lillian Pot… ahhhhh!" Pain shot through her body as arcs of green and red light danced across her skin. The man dropped her unceremoniously onto the ground as the pain continued to build up inside of her, her skin feeling as if it was being split open in places by hot knives. She could already taste blood in her mouth and her tongue felt tender. "Please… stop… it!!!!" The man pressed a wand to her neck. "I am not the one doing this. Something else is going on. It almost looks like… like there are two magical signatures inside of you." Something clicked in Lilith's head as reality sunk in. As the pain started to impair her ability to speak, she screamed. "Salazar… you bastard… you… could have warned me! Ahhhhh!" Lilith grinded her teeth as she tried to curl into herself before her eyes focused on the man's face. Tears raced down her face as thoughts of Hogwarts, Lillian's dearest friend and her mentor, went to war with thoughts of an Austrian Estate left in ruins, a family as old as time gone forever. She was alone. In every conceivable way, she was utterly alone. "Please… help… me. I have… nowhere else to go… Please…" The man sighed and aimed his wand at her face. A flash of red light was the last thing she knew of that day's events. She was grateful too, since it also happened to end her pain when she collapsed. Small favors and all.
-✦-
"Very well, can anyone go over with me the signs of Lycanthropy? Miss McGonagall?" Lilith sighed as she flipped the page, the book itself covering ways to enchant an object with magic and turn it into a ward's energy source. Wards were a frustrating thing to deal with. On one hand you could cast a few without a wardstone using a wand or other medium, making them harder to detect. On the other hand, you could anchor it to an object and have it sustained for longer by ambient magic from the ley lines, or from the magic of the wards primary maker, but the latter had the caster remain within proximity of the object at all times to charge it. Lilith had trouble understanding how a witch or wizard could themselves either generate magic continuously, or syphon it from another source, while everything else seemed to require an external source of magic. Based on ancient texts and discussions with Salazar, the former was somewhat true, but the later was far more important. According to him, magic had been far more powerful in a time he knew as the Age of Gods, also called the age of the Old Religion. Most of the magical creatures that existed today or that were long extinct were born from the effects of ambient magic in those early days, meaning that magic was something inherent to the world. Sometime after the dawn of civilization, that began to change and magic entered a period of decline before reaching a plateau sometime around the age when Hogwarts was constructed.
If magic had been capable of enhancing biological creatures, potentially even doing the same to humans in the past, and all magical creatures still retained their magic millennia later, then that had to mean that a sustainable source of magic had to be out there, somewhere, beyond the limitations of the leylines. But how to tap into it and make use of it without the limitations of ley lines and magical fonts? Lilith sighed, not finding what she was looking for in the text. Not being able to access magic was her current problem. Or rather, access her magics. Because transferring one's soul into a recently vacated body across space and time wasn't something that should have been possible, it was made all the more complicated when she discovered that Lilith and Lillian's magics were both inside of her. And neither was happy sharing the same real estate. Her physical episodes of pain were moments when both magics tried to find some sort of equilibrium and failed miserably. Her ally and Gringotts were both clear that an equilibrium should occur naturally and that both magics should meld into one. Unfortunately, there wasn't an expected time when this would happen. Eventually really was a shit description concerning the passage of time. "Miss Schwarzwald, could you describe the methods that a Werewolf could be incapacitated?" Lilith looked up at the expectant face of Professor Merrythought, knowing that others were looking at her. Lilith ran the question through her head. "Which form of Lycanthropy are you referring to, professor?"
Galatea seemed stunned for a second. "Explain." Lilith raised up her hand. "What Europeans call a Werewolf is unfortunately too broad of a term. If you look at the various cultures of the world, you can see that each region has their own unique version of Lycanthropy, though Asia has a higher degree of Ailuranthropy. In MACUSA, the native populations have what are known as Dogmen and Skinwalkers, all Lycanthropes. The Dogmen are a permanent transformation done willingly by the natives that allows them to retain a high degree of human intelligence, while the Skinwalkers are closer to our society's concept of Animagi, using pelts and rituals to change their form at will. In the southern regions of North America you will also find the Rougarou, which is a human permanently turned into a Lycanthrope that has lost all traces of their humanity. The South American Hemisphere has its own varieties, one called Lobizon. Even if you narrowed down the scope to Europe alone, you will find Lycanthropes akin to Animagi in the Scandinavian Region, and two varieties of Lycanthropes in Central Europe, one descending from the Germanic curses that can turn a person into a werewolf only on the full moon, another that makes them permanently werewolves and binds them into an almost ethereal state to be unleashed at a moment's notice. Finally there are the Lycans, descendants of the wolf-human hybrids of Ancient Greece, who can change forms at will."
Lilith continued. "Subduing any of these is as complicated as attempting to subdue any of the varieties of dragons. Some like the Morbach Shadow Beast can be restrained by a simple ritual, but are otherwise impervious to harm, including by silver or even a Killing Curse. Your typical cursed Werewolves, which I believe are the most common breed found within Britain, are susceptible to silver but resistant to magic up to a certain degree. Lycans, however, have a higher resistance to silver and physical harm, though a lower resistance to magic. I could go over the other methods to bind them into a human or wolf form but then we would be here all day." The classroom turned silent until Professor Merrythought cleared her throat. "Yes, quite. 25 points to Slytherin for such a detailed explanation." Lilith returned to her book and continued reading as the Professor carried on with her class, before the bell rang. "Miss Schwarzwald, a moment please." Lilith stored her book into her bag and approached the Professor, who was sitting behind her desk. Galatea Merrythought's face showed traces of magical scars not having healed adequately, signs of her past profession as an Auror. Still, her short brown hair showed a few strands of gray, with the woman's light brown eyes almost seeming to be amber in color. For someone advanced in age, she seemed to be in better condition than most former Aurors. "Yes, Professor?"
Merrythought sat back and tapped her fingers on the desk. "I take it you weren't educated at Beauxbatons?" Lilith shook her head. "My family had a bit of a row with the Beauxbatons Academy over their decision to eliminate the Dark Arts course. I was homeschooled." Galatea nodded in understanding. "I see. How far ahead would you say you are in the Defence Against… well, just Defence in general." Lilith thought for a second. "I have a far more detailed understanding of how the Dark Arts work and their counters than probably a seventh year student, though whether or not my knowledge would be admissible within OWL and NEWT evaluations is difficult to say." Galatea sighed. "Meaning it would be best that you continue studying for this class as normal, to at least understand what the examinations entail." Lilith nodded. "That was the plan, yes." Galatea looked at her with a degree of sympathy. "And as for the practical aspects of the course? I read Teresa's notice to all members of the staff." Lilith sighed. "Every Healer says the same thing. Wait and see. I am trying out an alternative means of Defence, one that doesn't rely on my ability to perform magic on the spot with the use of a wand. Until I have that alternative available, I am afraid any spells I use will be hampered. Hence why I didn't take your Dueling elective."
Seeing the time, Merrythought wrote down a small permission slip and passed it to Lilith as she stood up. "Very well. As long as you arrive at my class knowing the subject matter and aren't being disruptive, then I see no further issue. I will evaluate your practical knowledge without trying to aggravate your condition. You may go on to your next class, Miss Schwarzwald." Lillith took the piece of parchment. "Thank you, Professor. Also, I can understand that my last name is a bit convoluted for English speakers, but It's officially von Schwarzwald. Removing the von makes it sound as if you are referring to the forest and mountain region from which our name is derived, though we haven't called that region our family seat for millennia. I have no issue if you and others address me as Schwarzwald but please be careful with any official documents." Galatea nodded as second year students started entering the classroom. "I will keep that in mind, Miss von Schwarzwald. Have a good day." Lilith bowed her head. "Danke, Professor." Lilith left the classroom, before checking her copy of the schedule, closing her eyes and restraining a curse, as she made her way down to the first floor. Her next class would certainly test her patience.
-✦-
Tom watched as Lilith von Schwarzwald entered and approached the Deputy Headmaster, before handing him a bit of parchment. Looking it over, Dumbledore nodded. "Very well. Take a seat, Miss Schwarzwald." He watched her tense for a second before nodding and walking past Tom, taking the seat to his right. He frowned for a second when he watched her pull out an old massive text that was wrapped in dark brown leather, with no header on the cover. He was certain that wasn't the Transfiguration textbook. Then again, if her performance in Defence was anything to go by, then the chances she was already ahead of the other students in Transfiguration seemed high. Up at the front of the class, Professor Dumbledore clapped his hands and smiled at the students. "Welcome back to another year of Transfiguration. Today we will be going over a bit of a refresher. Before you is a ceramic teapot. Please transfigure it into a glass vase. I hope I don't have to repeat the incantation, as it was part of your examinations last year. You may begin while I go over the focus of this year's Transfiguration class. Now, we have gone over animate to inanimate Transfiguration in these past few years, as well as vice versa. This year, we will be focusing on Animate to Animate transformations. For example…"
Tuning out Dumbledore's lecture for a second, Tom aimed his Yew Wand at the teapot in front of him, closed his eyes and envisioned the vase he desired. " Ollam at Vasa. " Tom sat back and smiled as his teapot was turned into an ornate glass vase with intersecting snakes and Slytherin's coat of arms on it. He pulled open his notebook and started writing Dumbledore's summation of the class' focus for the year, before he peered to his right. He frowned as it seemed Lilith was repeating the spell over and over silently without her wand, before she reached out and touched the teapot with her hands. He watched as her brow furrowed in concentration as she kept muttering the spell over and over again, the teapot morphing into a simple glass vase, though it had a shape as if the glass was twisted while it was malleable. A simple but elegant design. It wasn't until it's shape was finalized that Lilith released the vase and her lips stopped moving. After she took a few deep breaths, she moved the vase away from the center of her area and returned to reading her book, her wand left on the table beside the book. Tom went back to his notebook, writing down Dumbledore's reading assignment, even as his mind worked to understand what he just saw.
In the last two days, Lilith von Schwarzwald had only ever used magic wandlessly and with a clear emphasis on physical contact. While he was aware of wandless magic being quite real, as he himself was proficient in causing pain and even conjuring flames on the palm of his hands, translating wand based spells to a wandless form had proven to be difficult for him. Yet she did it, though it was obviously not without its drawbacks. The slow and methodical concentration needed to get the spell to work wasn't something he would consider worth the effort. So why do the Transfiguration the way that Lilith carried it out? He looked towards the wand on the table, frowning a little as he moved his hand to dip his quill in the inkwell. The moment his hand got close to Lilith's wand, he noticed a familiar sense of magic. That was odd. Reaching down with his right hand, he touched his own Yew Wand, getting a similar reaction. Were their wands similar enough that he could use her's? He knew that wasn't all that uncommon, but to be able to use a wand as effectively as one's own was the difficult part. Cygnus and Walburga were known to switch wands a few times, making them a rarity in Slytherin House. If her wand was compatible with him, what did that tell him about its owner? Were they kindred spirits? Is that why her presence felt so… calming to him? Tom didn't know for sure, but it certainly piqued his interest.
As the Professor inspected everyone's work, he, like always, looked over Tom's vase, nodded silently and moved on. Dumbledore had been reluctant to offer him any show of appreciation or recognition of his work, which greatly irritated Tom. Didn't Dumbledore understand that his work was made to this level of detail to prove himself? Didn't he understand that Tom wanted Dumbledore to acknowledge him, after all the effort the man went through to keep tabs on him? Tom clenched his fist and swallowed his pride. One day he would get the bastard to acknowledge him. One day. "Miss Schwarzwald, this is an excellent design of a vase. However, I couldn't help but notice that you used your hands to use the spell. I wish to see you use the spell with your wand, as Transfiguration is a necessary course for getting a wand certification. Please try it now." Tom froze as he watched Dumbledore reverse the Transfiguration right in front of Lilith, his eyes fixed on her. He watched as she clenched and unclenched her jaw, before taking the wand into her left hand. He frowned as two arcs of light danced over the wood, one red and one green. She did the same as before, muttering the spell repeatedly, before Dumbledore spoke up. "Miss Schwartzwald, that isn't how you cast a spell. I am certain someone of your education knows that."
Tom felt his skin flush. The glare Lilith sent to the Deputy Headmaster was one he had never seen on anyone else's face. There was anger there that made him think that the two knew each other for more than just a few days. Did her meetings over the summer to be permitted into the school involve him and resulted in some clear bitterness? Lilith seemed to just ignore him and continued the muttering until Dumbledore sighed. "If you aren't capable of following instructions, Miss Schwarzwald, you will not be able to advance well in this class. 15 points from Slytherin." Dumbledore walked away from their desk and returned to the front of the class. "Now, let's get back on track. I want you all to read chapters 2 and 3 of your textbooks for the next class and write down what you see as the benefits of animate to animate Transfiguration and the difficulties that might arise in the moment of casting the spell. Now, let's go over the importance of why this type of magic doesn't violate Gamp's Law. As you all know, Gamp's law states that magic cannot…" Tom kept his attention on Dumbledore, the man clearly trying to convey that what had happened was nothing of consequence. That was as far as possible from the truth in Tom's mind.
Dumbledore continued his lecture until the bell rang, with Tom storing his materials away and allowing Lilith to leave before him. He followed behind her silently for several corridors until she stopped. "Is there a reason you are shadowing me, Herr Riddle?" Tom blinked for a second before feeling his skin warm at the way she addressed him. "I was curious if you are alright." She turned around and searched his face, making him frown a little as she smiled softly, apparently liking what she saw, though he was certain his appearance wasn't giving anything away. "Danke for your concern, Herr Riddle. I am afraid that my issues on this matter are private. Perhaps I may share them with you later, when we can be certain as to what we both gain from each other's trust." Tom smiled softly. "I would like that. Though I am curious as to where you were going. Binn's history classroom is on the next floor above a few corridors away." Lilith looked around, surprise on her face before she blushed in embarrassment. "Ah, right. I might have been thinking of other things. Would you be willing to escort me?" Tom directed her to the nearest set of stairs, walking close to her side. Whatever her end goal might be, she was no friend of Dumbledore's. That alone was worth him taking a little risk.
-✦-
"Ah, Miss von Schwarzwald. Come in, come in." Lilith entered Horace Slughorn's office, her eyes seeing echoes of what the place looked like under Severus Snape's tenure. The two men clearly shared a sense of decor, their shelves containing either some really rare and dangerous potions, or equally rare and preserved ingredients. Though Snape also stored a great many texts on the Dark Arts in his bookshelves. Lilith did spot a few texts that weren't as… benign as she would have expected from the man she first met in her sixth year. Her eyes stopped for a second on what looked to be a chicken leg, though the scales on the thigh were a lot different from what any ordinary avian had. "Is that a Cockatrice leg?" The young man in formal clothes followed her line of sight. "Ohh hoo, have you seen a cockatrice first hand or have you only seen it within your textbooks, miss?" Lilith thought about both of her lifetimes. "I believe I saw one at the von Schwarzwald Estate, though it wasn't ours. My grandmother was a Potioneer and had decided to dedicate her final years to the craft. She declined to buy the cockatrice offered to her by a traveling merchant as it was far too young. One must preserve the magical species of the world, before we endanger them with our pride and greed." Slughorn nodded. "A most wise outlook. She sounds like a wonderful woman."
Lilith chuckled lightly, but with some sadness in her tone. "She was, though a bit strict for what little time I knew her. Then again, some measure of strictness is to be expected out of a Potions Master. Discipline is the only thing that separates your kind from a successful brew… or a face full of superheated ingredients. I assume that a matter of discipline is why you summoned me here tonight, Professor?" Slughorn motioned with his hand for her to take a seat. As soon as Lilith was seated, Horace spoke up. "I am afraid that is correct. Several of my Prefects informed me of what occurred yesterday evening. Miss von Schwarzwald, we do not tolerate violence and threats between our students." Lilith leaned back. "Are you certain? Or is it that you don't tolerate it when it's the students fighting back to protect themselves." Slughorn frowned. "My Prefects were quite clear that you initiated the attack." Lilith chuckled. "Oh no, Valerio Rosier initiated a physical attack against me. I merely intercepted it and retaliated in kind. I know three Prefects who can verify my actions." Slughorn sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I see. And was it necessary? To strike back?" Lilith shrugged her shoulders. "Sir, do you know why the war has deteriorated the way it has? I am certain some people will say it was Grindelwald's genius, and some of that might be true, but do you know why the war is the way it is now?"
Horace shook his head. "I am afraid I do not keep up with the war all that much." Lilith sighed. Typical British wizard. Too sure of their sense of safety to not be concerned with the dangers that a war in the Continent presents to Britain. "Part of the reason why the German army is as widespread with its conquests currently is due to how European nations decided to react to their initial confrontations. The invasions of my home and Czechoslovakia were allowed to happen by the greater military powers because they were certain that the Germans would stop. That they wouldn't dare to test the might of the Allies that had crushed them nearly a quarter of a century ago. But, because the Allies did nothing, because no actions were taken to penalize the Germans, they had no incentive to stop. Poland fell right after to the Germans and the Soviets and the war started in earnest. By then it was too late. Germany had acquired a taste for violence and had developed its military strength to be enough to counter the Allies. France fell within a month and a half and Norway soon followed. This war could have been slowed down, or have even been prevented if the Allies had taken a more aggressive stance against the ambitions of men bent on pursuing their own selfish ambitions. My family, unfortunately, made the same mistake as the Allies. We thought we were safe behind our name and infamy. We thought we could get away with being left alone. We were wrong."
Lilith leaned back and stared at Slughorn in the eyes. "I am not going to repeat the same mistakes. Violence will be met with violence, attempts to spread fear will be countered at every turn by a show of force. I watched my world be destroyed by cowards too afraid to show bullies and criminals that their actions have consequences. I will not let that happen again. So if you wish to give me detention, then remember what I said. If you reward the bully and punish the victim, how soon will the bully take advantage of your cowardice. How soon will they make you and everything you care about a victim of their unrestrained ambition and violence?" The two remained staring at each other, Slughorn trying to retain some semblance of control. "The Rosiers are a powerful family." Lilith raised an eyebrow. "And the Black's aren't? Rosier attempted to target the younger years, which include Orion Black. Which would you rather have, Lord Rosier breathing down your neck, or Sirius and Arcturus Black mobilizing their entire family and their influence within the Wizengamot against you?" Slughorn winced and pulled on the collar of his dress shirt and jacket. "You have a point. I won't give you a detention, but I will ask that you temper your … acts of reciprocation. And please try to keep such matters within Slytherin." Lilith smiled at the man. "Believe me sir, I remember your words during your introduction in the Common Room. Slytherin matters will remain as such… unless the situation is changed beforehand."
Taking her bookbag off the floor, Lillith turned and made for the door before she stopped. She turned around and looked at the Professor. "Before I forget. My grandmother spoke well of a fellow Potioneer. He was apparently a young man who was still at Hogwarts with a preference for sweets, especially chocolates filled with pineapple or even crystallised pineapple, but who had read her book on refined potions materials and had started corresponding with her by letter. She called him one of the brightest minds she ever had the pleasure of writing to. She had intended to give him a manuscript she had handwritten concerning some of her observations as a Potions Master as a gift for when he gained his Mastery but she passed away a few years ago. That book is now probably nothing more than part of a greater pile of ash, stone and melted glass in the middle of a clearing. Her one regret, before she died of Tuberculosis, was never getting the chance to send it to her friend from across the channel, in the hopes that he could carry on her craft in her absence. It's dreadful, isn't it Professor, what can be lost when you don't pay attention to what happens just a few thousand kilometers away, across a relatively narrow stretch of water."
Slughorn stared at the closed door of his office, feeling his eyes water and his heart ache. He pulled out a small bound notebook full of handwritten letters, before slowly opening it and reading the familiar handwriting. He closed his eyes and cursed his ignorance. Several years ago, as a student and an apprentice, he would correspond with one of the greatest Potions Master of Britain almost weekly about some new discovery in potions, from the work in finding new ingredients in the Asian Subcontinent, to the use of alternate magical creature components that had less of a devastating impact on their populations. And then… the letters stopped. He had only realized that she had been married and had a son after asking Lord Black about his reclusive sister, who had apparently died on the Continent. To hear now, some time after Aquilla Black's death, that she had never forgotten about him and had hoped to help him refine his work before illness struck her down by the grandchild he never knew she had… Horace closed the notebook after drying it with a cloth to keep a few stray tears from falling onto its pages, the only thing he had to remember of a colleague he had all but forgotten. The door to his office remained closed until he left for his room that night.
-✦-
"I take it Slughorn decided not be stupid?" Lilith raised her head up and looked across from her as Alphard sat down. She had come to the library to find a copy of one of the older versions of the Transfiguration text to complete the homework Dumbledore had asked for. The current textbook, she knew, was a bit light on the theoretical aspects and she didn't want to give the "by the book" moron a reason to lower her grade any further. Putting her fountain pen away, she touched the page and focused on getting the ink to dry, repeating the spell phrase over and over until the spell took effect, before setting it aside. She then looked at Alphard, raising an eyebrow. "I suppose that depends on whose point of view we are talking about. To you and me, it might seem to be a victory, but to certain parties, not so much." Alphard gave her a soft smile, before he gestured with his head. She placed the textbook away to its rightful place, having already copied the relevant pages onto her own pieces of parchment, before notifying the Librarian. The two left the Library soon after, with a ward activating around both of them. Lilith poked the ward with her finger, getting a feel for it.
"Sound negation outside of the area of effect?" Alphard nodded. "Something Aunt Cassiopeia taught me." Lilith looked over Alphard again. Her memories as Lillian told her that Alphard was an eccentric member of the family, widely regarded as the generation's white sheep before Sirius, her Godfather, came about. A man who was more well known for his preference for men, artistry and quiet nature, he had been ostracized sometime after the rise of Voldemort. It always surprised her how Alphard, the Black who was in Tom's year group, never fell for his charms, yet Walburga and Cygnus did, with Orion forced to follow them after he was married to Walburga. That thought of Walburga having her way with an eleven year old Orion made Lilith shudder. Perhaps it had less to do with the outcast not following the family and more of him being aware as to Tom's failing mental state. He had to have been around Riddle after the creation of at least one of his Horcruxes, the Diary. At least that's what she and her ally had been able to piece together. If her former Head of Slytherin House and Walburga's portrait were right about the events surrounding the next few years, then it was this year and the next that would be the times when something would have changed Tom Riddle's outlook. What could have thrown him so off balance that he would have been willing to damage his soul to survive death? What could have pushed him to ally himself with the Blood Supremacy movement so viciously?
Getting her mind back on track, Lilith tried to equate the impression Alphard had on her Godfather and his cousin Walburga that would have resulted in him being looked down upon by the blood purists but so well liked by Sirius and perhaps even Orion and Arcturus at one time. She frowned. Alphard had a strong relationship with Arcturus, her godfather Sirius, but a distant one with Orion, post Walburga. And now he said that he learned that ward spell from Cassiopeia, his aunt, who was also known to have been distant from Walburga after her brother embraced the Blood Supremacy movement. Everyone in the future assumed the Black family was entirely behind Voldemort but what if that was wrong? What if a splinter group tied to the head of the family resisted, only failing at convincing Orion to take a stand against his wife? A group that had more information than anyone afterwards understood, but were too fragmented to use it accordingly, lacking the power over the Family Magic necessary to fight back. A shadow of the family's… Lilith's mind froze as they reached an abandoned classroom, before Alphard lit the candles and closed the door. Didn't Walburga mention something about Regulus being trained as a shadow of Sirius the one time she broke down? As she noticed that they had entered a secluded room, Lilith started building up the magic needed to drop Alphard, just in case her theory was wrong. "So, what did you really want to ask, Herr Black?"
Her voice must have betrayed some of her concern as Alphard looked her over. "You don't have to be worried about me. I am not the type to attack a person like this, let alone a girl." Lilith raised an eyebrow. "True. I have certainly seen the way that your eyes linger on Riddle's rear. Should I let him know?" Alphard cleared his throat. "As attractive as he is, he isn't interested in boys or girls, so that wouldn't be advised. Well, he wasn't until you came along. Something about you definitely draws his eyes. Though that isn't why I called you here. I merely want to know if you need any help. Anything at all." Lilith searched his eyes, seeing no emotion behind the request. He was too emotionally detached to be offering that to her. "Who is asking? Alphard Black, or Lord Sirius Black, the Head of House Black?" A small flinch managed to escape his control. "Is there a difference? We are all still family." Lilith smiled at him. "Of course it matters. A favor from you could be repaid with some hints as to what certain boys like to eat, their favorite drinks or who prefers to be in control. A favor to Lord Black could cost me my family's future, or did he fail to mention that when he asked you to check in on his great niece?" Alphard winced in full, his attempt at hiding his discomfort all but gone. He rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, I figured you would see it that way. I am guessing that's why you stayed away from Castle Black?"
Lilith took a seat at a nearby table and crossed her legs. "I thought about it. My mother was a first generation witch, which meant her family was of no help in the magical world. I am quite literally the last von Schwarzwald of the mainline, with all other branches of the family being quite happy to forget any ties they might have to us. Aquilla's family was my only option family wise. I thought about it until I checked Sirius' track record. Marius, Cedrella, Callidora. Need I say more?" Alphard sighed, before sitting down. "He had to have his reasons." Lilith bristled. "Toujour Purs! Always Pure. Always Black. Don't give me that crap, Alphard. Our families agreed to my grandparents' marriage because we both held the same ideals. Family always came first. Always! Leaving Marius with nothing more than a Trust Fund? Banishing Cedrella for refusing to marry another man for politics? All but cutting off Callidora for marrying into a distinguished Light family? These are the actions of a politician, not a Head of House." Alphard rubbed his face. "What would you like us to do about it? We all have to follow his lead." Lilith shrugged. "That is something you have to figure out, before it's too late. As far as I am concerned, I am just another outsider."
Alphard's face turned serious. "Not to me, or to the rest of the family that knows. You are a part of the family, Lilith." Lilith smiled at him, a genuine smile. "Danke for that, Alphard. It means a lot. But I need to protect my family too. I need to make sure that at the very least we are avenged. But for now… I need to become strong enough to be able to fight on my own. I can't do that. Not yet. But that doesn't mean I can't help the Blacks. I will protect Orion and the rest of you as best as I can. You just make sure that the family doesn't fall apart from within. Got that… shadow in training?" Alphard nodded absentmindedly before he froze. He stared at Lilith who smiled back at him, the two left in silence. Alphard eventually relaxed. "That doesn't leave this room." Lilith giggled. "Of course not. Though I hope I can tell Riddle about the way you look at his rear. I want to see the look on his face." Alphard turned serious. "Be careful around him, Lilith. He isn't all there. There is a cold edge to him. Something dangerous. I have been trying to defuse it as best as I can but he isn't fond of making connections and, despite my reputation, he is too wary of the Black family name to approach me directly. Having a loose cannon in Slytherin is never a good thing." Lilith stood up but the smile never left her face as she went for the door. "Well, now you have two of them." Alphard rubbed his face as she closed the door behind her. "So I noticed."