The year that followed marked the beginning of a new era — not just for me, but for the one I had remade. Ariana Dumbledore was gone; in her place stood Arianna, the Obscurial reborn — my apprentice, my creation, and perhaps my most promising student.
From the first week, I could sense it — the power that simmered beneath her calm exterior. The Obscurial energy within her wasn't just destructive chaos anymore; under my guidance, it became something far greater. A living current of black magic that responded to thought and emotion with frightening precision.
I taught her control — to shape the darkness that once consumed her, to use it as a weapon instead of letting it use her.
Her progress was extraordinary. Within months, she had mastered spells that took others years to comprehend. She spoke the Unforgivable Curses as if they were a second language — calm, deliberate, and devastatingly efficient. She learned shadow conjuration, binding hexes, and the art of soul resonance, adapting techniques that even I once struggled to stabilize.
But I didn't limit her to curses. I forged her mind.
Occlumency came next — though not the crude versions taught at Hogwarts. What I shared with her was my design: a fortress layered within the mind, each level crafted with illusions, traps, and false memories.The first layer was simple — a labyrinth of deceit designed to distract any Legilimens.The second was more sophisticated, riddled with mental snares that turned intruders' own emotions against them.And the final layer… that was her true self, a citadel forged of black flame and silver wards, a reflection of her rebirth.
She took to it faster than I expected. I could sense her consciousness growing sharper, colder — disciplined. When I probed her defenses during practice, I was met not with resistance, but with misdirection. She was learning how to lie with her very thoughts. Perfect.
Then came Legilimency. I showed her how to pierce the mind — how to slip past barriers by following emotion instead of thought, how to plant whispers and memories like seeds. Together, we practiced for hours — until she could shatter basic Occlumency walls with a single glance.
Combat training followed. I tested her every weakness — forcing her to adapt, to think beyond conventional magic. Her Obscurial power made her dangerous; I made her unstoppable. She learned how to combine her black energy with spellwork, turning curses into storms of pure destructive magic. Her body moved with grace and lethal precision, a silent storm in human form.
By the end of the year, she was no longer the trembling shadow that once hid behind fear. She had become a weapon honed by discipline and shaped by power — a living echo of my teachings.
One evening, as we stood in the center of the dueling hall, surrounded by the fading echoes of our spells, I looked at her — truly looked at her. Her eyes glowed faintly blue, the Obscurial energy pulsing like a heartbeat beneath her skin. She was calm, confident, powerful.
"You've done well," I said. "But power without understanding is nothing. Tell me, Arianna — what is the purpose of darkness?"
She paused, her gaze unwavering. "To protect, to destroy… and to free," she said softly. "It is not evil. It is will, unrestrained."
A slow smile spread across my face. She understood.
The Obscurial was gone. The girl was gone.In their place stood a sorceress born of shadow — my apprentice, my legacy.
And together, we would change the wizarding world.