Merlin didn't even know what I was doing when I found myself at the Headmistress' office door, but when I knocked, Hamplin opened the door and smiled.
"I knew you'd come for my help." She told me, proudly.
"Don't believe that this has to do with me being helpless and unknowing with what to do with my son. I am open to any ideas, but in the end, I may disregard them. I hope you understand." I told her.
"Of course, I understand. It's been your personality since the fifth year. I've taken note." She said.
We sat down at her desk and she pushed a piece of parchment towards me.
"I think this should say most of my plan. Should you accept after explanation, I will send it." Headmistress said.
I took the piece of parchment and looked down at the neat writing;
Dear Headmistress McGonagall,
To begin, my name is Principal Hamplin, charge of Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I write on behalf of one of our teachers, Professor Raven Snape. As a plan to help her own son, Colden Aecis, find a balance in his personal attitude, we would like to send our professor and her two children to continue work and studies at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. This is to help Raven and her children remember and learn of a past that is important for them to know. Raven has been through so much as a child and she has surpressed it to a level where she has lost herself. Whether she sees it or not is unknown, but I believe that she needs to find herself again. Finding herself will help her children understand the woman who raised them.
I await your owl,
Principal Hamplin
"I thought this was just about Colden. Why are you bringing me into this?" I asked her, pushing the parchment back.
"As I said earlier, your children don't know the real you. They know a charade. You must remember those days long ago so they do not become conflicted about their own personalities."
"There was a reason I came here; to try to forget. There is a dark past at Hogwarts and just being in the same region as it causes me pain. They don't need to know the horrors of Hogwarts. They don't need to know that their mother was in a war, fighting for the wrong team."
"And yet, a part of you, deep down, believes you fought for the right team. That is the part of you that your children have not met. It's the true part of you."
"They don't need the pain that the real me brings. My father was a brilliant wizard. The Dark Lord was like a father to me when my father failed to be one. My aunt was the only one who truely understood my devotion to the cause we fought for. The death eaters were family when mine failed to be there for me. They were friends when I lacked some at school. And now they're all dead. Every single person that I cared about died in that war. My children don't need to know of this." I explained plainly.
The headmistress nodded, looking at me, as if I had something to add. As if she was expecting me to say something else. I sighed and shrugged.
"You can send the letter. But my expectation will be that McGonagall will accept my children, but not me. It's common sense."
With a smile, the headmistress put the letter in and envelope and walked over to a sleeping owl to my right that I never even noticed was there.
"Take this to Wizarding Post." She told him.
I watched the owl take the letter in his beak and flew out an open sky light. I left soon after that. I knew that my children would want an explanation long before the day they left. I couldn't do the same thing my father and Dumbledore did to me. I sent quick owls to Colden and Iliana to meet me in my office. As I waited, I graded some potions papers that I had somehow allowed to pile up from the past week. I put all the focus I had at the moment to be as I usually was- harsh and precise.
"Professor?" A voice called about ten minutes after I started grading, followed by a knock.
I grabbed my wand from my pocket and swished it at the door, causing it to open and reveal Colden and Iliana. They walked in and sat across from me.
"I need you two to listen and not say a word until I am finished speaking, is that clear?" I asked the kids.
They nodded and I went on to tell them what the headmistress and I have been talking about throughout the day.
"The letter has been sent to the headmistress of Hogwarts and I should be sending you on your way to England." I told them.
"Send us? What about you?" Iliana asked me.
"Whilst waiting for the two of you, I have decided to stay here and finish the year at Ilvermorny. It isn't a post I can leave whenever I want. But for you, it will be easy to catch up in your classes. And besides, Professor McGonagall has no reason to deny your transfer, but has every reason to deny mine." I explained to her.
"Why?" Colden asked.
"Because I am not the person I play myself to be. Here, I put on a mirage. At Hogwarts, there is a high chance that the mirage will cease to exist and my true personality will show. It's a story to save for another time."
"How long will you hide this story?" Colden asked.
"Excuse me?"
"Well our father has been in prison for ten years and we don't know why. You said you know, and just like you just said, it's a story for another time. So how long are you going to hold this one from us? Another ten years? Forever?" He said.
"Colden, I said it once and I will not say it again- it's for another time. And now that I've said what I needed to say, you're free to go." I told them.
Colden quickly got up and left the office, while Iliana stayed behind.
"Is there more?" I asked her.
"I feel like you're not telling me something." She said.
"Are you holding onto the story? Iliana I told you-"
"It's not the story, mom." Iliana sighed, "I feel like this transfer is going to happen over Christmas break, which is understandable, but if you're not coming with us, where will we stay?" She asked.
I thought for a moment, which lasted a mere second before Draco and Astoria popped into my head.
"I have some friends that may be willing to take you in for a bit. But I'll have to check on it." I said.
I thought about Astoria and her mind. I felt the familiar feeling of getting sucked into another person's head. I could see her memories and how she was at the moment. I saw Draco sitting next to Astoria in bed. A wet towel was placed upon her forehead. Her body looked thin and frail. Draco fed her some soup before placing the bowl on the side table beside her. I pulled myself back to my own surroundings and nodded. I had a plan.
"You're going to live with a couple I know. The man's name is Draco Malfoy and his wife is Astoria Malfoy. They have a son who's your age. His name is Scorpius. Astoria has a blood curse that puts her in a lot of pain and will eventually kill her. Luckily for her, my daughter gets her potion skills from her mother and grandfather. I am going to teach you a potion that I have created. You will learn everything about this potion and when you have perfected it, I will send you to England to make it for Astoria." I explained to her.
"Perfect! When do we start?" She asked.
"Meet me in the potions classroom after your last class and bring a notebook."
***
Iliana's POV
Christmas break
I packed the last of my clothes into my trunk and I floated it out to the foyer, where my mom was waiting for my brother and myself. I pulled on some black running shoes. I pulled my black cloak over my shoulders and fastened the button.
"Did you pack your cauldron and enough supplies to brew two vials?" Mom asked me.
"I think so." I told her.
"To only think is not enough. Did you, or did you not?" She asked again.
"I did. And if I didn't, I know where to find them." I assured her.
My brother came into the foyer and quickly put on his shoes and cloak. My mother held her arms out to each of us and we took it. Without a moment to prepare I could feel my body twist on itself and it felt as if I was getting squeezed through a long, thin tube. In mere seconds, our feet landed on solid ground and our surroundings had changed. There, we stood in front of a small house. The gardens were overgrown with weeds, but that was the least of my worries. What worried me was the loud snap sound that came from behind me. Our mother disapparated without saying goodbye and we were on our own. I looked up at my big brother, who looked awkward as he stepped up to the door and knocked three times. I stood close behind him as the door opened and a boy with blond hair appeared. I quickly stepped up and held out my free hand.
"Hi, I'm Iliana Aecis, how are you?" I introduced myself.
"I'm Scorpius and I'm well." He said, shaking my hand, "How can I help you guys?"
"Well, it's more of how we can help each other," I told him, "My mother is Raven Snape. Our parents used to be friends when they were in school. May we come in?"
Scorpius moved aside for us and we walked inside the house.
"My parents have mentioned a Raven Snape from Hogwarts. They love telling stories. If you're her kids, it means that my father owes your mother something." Scorpius said.
"We need somewhere to stay until we leave to Hogwarts. In return, we will help your mother." I told him.
His attitude completely changed at the mention of his mother. He looked between my brother and me with surprise and a hint of suspicion.
"I'll be back. Make yourselves at home." He said and ran further into the house.
I looked up at my brother, who shrugged and placed his trunk down. We removed our shoes and waited for the boy to come back.
"This wouldn't be so hard if Mom had stayed to explain everything." Colden told me.
"I agree, but I think we'll be welcomed here."
In a few moments, the boy came back and waved at us to follow him. I picked my trunk up and followed the boy, with my brother close behind me. We followed him down a hall, then up some stairs to the second floor. Then, we walked up to the door at the end of the short hallway. Scorpius knocked, then opened the door. On the other side was a bedroom with pictures lining the walls, a television and a bed. On the bed was a frail woman, beautiful, but weak.
"Come in, children. I have been waiting for so long to meet you." The woman's kind voice welcomed us.
I gladly walked up to her bedside and smiled at the woman.
"You must be Iliana. You look so much like your mother." She said to me with a smile.
"I am. My mother was unable to join us because of her duties at Ilvermorny, but she has taught me everything I know and she sent me here to help you the best I can." I told her.
"You have been blessed with a kindness that can't be taught. Your mother was cold at Hogwarts. Something must have changed in her heart for you to obtain such great quality."
"I can assure you, I have not obtained my mother's kindness, as she lacks it herself. I obtained it on my own. I don't want to be known as someone who is feared. I want to be known as someone who has earned trust and friendship." I said.
Astoria smiled up at me, then looked over at Colden. With her arm resting on the bed, she opened her hand to him and a gesture to join us.
"Your mother spoke of you most in her letter. It is not my place to share the story of where you get your personality, but you will get your answers here when it it your time." She told him.
"When it's my time? What does that mean? Why can't you tell me? It's not like Mom will ever tell." Colden asked.
"It means that everything you need will come to you. Be patient, my boy. Merlin works in mysterious ways, but you mustn't doubt him. It will come when you're ready." She explained.
"I'm ready now! I don't have time to wait!"
"My brother is impatient. And I understand why. She tells us 'it is a story for another time' or 'I'll tell you when you're older' but with each day that passes, it's a new time, we're another day older and it makes us believe that she's hiding something. Is she?" I asked.
She took a sharp inhale as she adjusted herself painfully into a more comfortable position.
"You're in pain?" I asked her, gently adjusting the blankets over her.
"Only when I move. But it gets worse by the day." She told me.
"My mother taught me to brew a potion of her own creation. It's to help you with your pain." I told her.
"I will do anything. But I know that when it is my time, the ghosts of the great sorcerers will take me and I will greet them gladly." She told me.
I looked up and over to the door, where Scorpius look to the ground. I knew that hearing this hurt him. I looked back at Astoria with a small smile.
"I will begin the brew now." I told her.
I left only moments later with my trunk and Scorpius close on my tail.
"How does it work? You weren't lying about helping her? A simple potion will help her?" He asked me.
I stopped as we reached the stairs. I turned to him, showing him apologies with one look.
"I can help, Scorpius, but what my mother taught me is to treat her specific pains. It will give her some strength back, but only some of it. In the end, her date is set. I just hope it will give you peace to know that she doesn't go in pain. She will not suffer starting today, I promise." I told him.
"She's still going to die?" He asked, "How do you stop that?"
I sighed, shaking my head, "I can't. I'm smart, but I'm not one to defy nature. Anything unnatural will bring evil and I can't risk that. Not only that, but to do such things would need a stone that no longer exists, to split her soul and put it into objects. Splitting her soul would-"
"It would tear her apart. Everyone knows about Voldemort and how he came to be what he was. To split a soul you have to kill someone. My father told me that my mother has hurt one person in her life and it had her in dark spirits for months. The man was a Death Eater in the Battle of Hogwarts, an enemy, but my mother was and always has been against hurting people, including those who intend to hurt her. This man wanted to kill her and so she protected herself. Who knew that protecting herself would also hurt her spirit?"
"Hogwarts? My mother went there. She never mentioned a battle." I told him.
"Why don't you start brewing and I'll tell you everything I know." He offered, leading me down the stairs.
I nodded and followed to the kitchen. I set up the table to begin the brew, and he- the story