Altair could see red flames dancing at the exit of the tunnel. He was slightly surprised that nobody had bothered to cast the counter-spell. At the exit stood McGonagall, with Harley by her side and Violet beside her. Harley frowned, while Violet smiled in an irritating way. Lyra and Daphne weren't there.
Lily smiled when she saw her daughter. The deputy headmistress walked away with the old headmaster and started talking to him. Altair couldn't hear what they were saying.
He cast a counter-spell on the tree, extinguishing the light and forcing them to cast Lumos.
"You should be asleep," Lily said, hugging her daughter as if she needed support.
Altair could understand her. Anything related to her deceased son would sadden her. He regretted not hiding Pettigrew to give him to her later. He understood her desire for revenge; even his difficult childhood could not compare to the experience of losing a child. He wondered what Dumbledore would do. Would he hand Pettigrew over to the Ministry? Would he kill him? Or would he give him to Lily?
The man was difficult to read. Altair could sense a sadness emanating from the Headmaster. From what little he knew, Arcturus and Dumbledore had been comrades during the war. Perhaps even friends? Dumbledore had killed one of his friends that night. The young man admired his ability to focus on urgent issues. Then again, perhaps it was not a skill, but a consequence. In Britain, there were no wizards who could speak to him as an equal. He had always borne the burden of wizarding society. He was called upon for every problem. When he wasn't, and others failed, he was left with the nagging thought: 'If only I had been there...'
He wondered if he would carry that same loneliness years from now.
"Where is he?" he heard Harley ask.
"Ask your grandfather," Lily said, perhaps too harshly..
Albus's back tensed, but he kept walking. Altair wondered what he was trying to avoid: Lily killing Pettigrew? She had already killed many Death Eaters. Was it revenge? Did he not want to see her consumed by it?
Initially, Altair's revenge had been satisfying. The Malfoy family were at his feet, Lucius was as good as dead, and Draco loved to serve him. The two Malfoy women were at his disposal, to be taken as he pleased.
The truth is that he had hoped it would be his reason for living. In the end, however, it was just another chapter in his life. His hatred diminished over time. He still hated Narcissa and Lucius, albeit less intensely, and he felt sorry for Draco. He was like that because of his parents. Sometimes he wondered if he had gone too far with him.
As for Cassiopeia, she was a bitch, but not all that bad. She had changed her behaviour at Hogwarts. She no longer sought to annoy others. Many thought this was because of her father's sad state and the fact that her brother was away running the household. But it was really because she no longer found satisfaction in the suffering of others; she found satisfaction in serving him.
Altair could see that revenge wasn't necessary and that Lily didn't have to kill Pettigrew herself. There were other ways. Like, hand him over to the authorities.
Bullshit.
He turned Draco into a house elf simply for threatening Lavender and trying to humiliate Harley. He did it even after the boy had been defeated. Not for hate but for pride.
Had Altair lost a child because of Pettigrew, he would have been capable of making him immortal just to torture him for eternity. Greek mythology was a source of inspiration: Sisyphus, Prometheus.
Altair decided that, unless Dumbledore killed Pettigrew, he would hand him over to Lily. The Malfoys' influence was still there; he could get to him one way or another.
Altair looked at Violet, who was looking up at him proudly. She knew how much she had helped him. He would reward her after interrogating Pettigrew.
"Do you know where my sister and Daphne are?" he asked her. Perhaps they were too shaken up to stay there.
"The Deputy Headmistress sent them to the Infirmary; Professor Flitwick accompanied them. She also took care of chasing away the curious onlookers," she replied. "Is that all you have for me?" She tilted his head and smiled.
"You can ask me for anything," he said as he passed by her.
"I want to lead your coven," she said.
"You'll join my coven, understood. I'll introduce you to the other girls later," he said, rolling his eyes.
"That's not what I meant," she said stubbornly. The smile on her face did not falter.
'"Deep down you know you will...I'll convince you later. I have things to attend to," said Altair.
He had already figured out how the witch's mind worked. She wasn't evil, per se. She was someone who sought adrenaline rushes. Romance and kindness weren't her thing. She wanted danger and aggression from him, which was why she found him so attractive.
The group walked in silence behind the director. Harley supported his mother, who seemed to be somewhere between fury and weakness.
When they entered the castle, Violet took a different path. Meanwhile, Lily and her daughter began a small argument.
"Anyway, Altair will tell me... He's busy, so do you want me to waste my time repeating things I can hear for myself?" said the obstinate young woman.
Altair shrugged when the redhead looked at him, neither confirming nor denying her words.
Lily didn't want her daughter there. Not when she was planning to kill the man as soon as they had all the information they needed from him.
"Let her come," was the director's order.
"They're too young to get involved in adult problems," McGonagall protested.
Altair wished he could just shove his cock in her mouth to shut her up. She was always so uptight. In the original story, she was a strict old woman. Here, the only difference was that she wasn't old; although her age was showing, she looked around forty-five or fifty. But her real age was almost double that.
Was it a problem for him that she was five times his age? No. Would he actively try to sleep with her? No. If he had the chance, would he sleep with her? Definitely, he thought this as he watched her bottom move beneath that green dress.
"They're old enough," Albus said.
Both women wanted to protest, but they stopped in front of a gargoyle.
Altair heard the name of a sweet she had never known in either of her lives. They climbed the sliding stairs and entered the headteacher's office.
Albus, Lily, Harley, and Altair entered the office. The transformation teacher excused herself, claiming to have other duties.