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"LUNA, DO YOU KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE RAVENCLAW DIADEM?", VICTORIA QUESTIONED. the quire girl looked up from her book, closing it as she hummed for a moment.
"honestly I'm not quite sure. it's said that no one alive has seen it", luna answered, to which victoria knew for a fact that wasn't true, as voldemort was still very much alive.
"if only the helena ravenclaw portrait outside the library could speak. perhaps she ought to know where it is", victoria randomly grumbled.
"then why don't you ask her personally?", luna simply answered.
"she's dead luna. unless you have some resurrection power to bring her back to life. it's quite impossible to—"
"the grey lady", luna interrupted.
"excuse me?"
"ravenclaw's ghost, the grey lady", luna repeated more specifically this time.
'ah right...the ghosts of each house'.
"you're brilliant luna!", victoria praised, making the ravenclaw girl just smile.
"I'm glad I could help", luna replied as victoria immediately stood up to leave.
"I'll see you later then luna!"
the ravenclaw girl watched her friend leave as she reopened her book and continued reading.
•♛•
"what happened to your hand?", victoria asked as the girl walked with dumbledore towards the astronomy tower.
victoria had yet to tell harry about helena ravenclaw's ghost, as dumbledore had immediately requested the girl's presence, making her wonder what was wrong.
"I've successfully retrieved the slytherin locket from the black family. which means there's only...nagini left", dumbledore said.
"I see...are you going to task me to go kill his snake next then?", victoria asked in a bored tone, seeming to have seen this coming.
"I'm offering you a choice right now, ms. noir", dumbledore slightly chuckled.
"a choice? since when?", victoria scoffed, crossing her arms as she leaned against the railing of the tower.
"right now. I've stumbled upon the resurrection stone. it was embedded into the marvolo gaunt family ring: one of tom's horcruxes. you asked what happened to my hand right?"
victoria simply nodded, glancing at dumbledore's right hand that seemed to be as dark as ashes from the pinkie up to the middle finger.
"it was the impatience in myself that had prompted me to hastily put on the ring without a second's thought. it was cursed, though thanks to severus, it didn't completely engulf me", dumbledore explained.
"how long do you have?", victoria seriously asked, glancing once again at dumbledore's spreading curse that was immensely slowed down.
"a year".
victoria just nodded, awkwardly shuffling her feet.
"so the offer..."
"I'm giving you a chance of becoming the master of death", dumbledore quickly followed up, making victoria feel the air in her lungs being punched out of her throat.
"w-what?"
"I'm offering you the opportunity of becoming the master of death", dumbledore repeated more sternly this time.
indeed, victoria now possessed the invisibility cloak stolen from harry, the resurrection stone that dumbledore had found, and the elder wand...the most powerful wand was right in the old wizard's hand.
this was the moment that victoria millicent noir had dreamed of since she was able to think and act for herself.
years and years of hard work she spent on searching for the three items. and now, the albus dumbledore was offering her the opportunity of her deepest desires.
no. the mirror of erised showed otherwise. victoria wanted a loving family. a family that would cherish her as much as draco malfoy does.
dumbledore could make out the girl's internal conflict, as victoria's eyes flicked with such uncertainty for the first time ever.
"I—"
"VICTORIA~", a voice cheered, making the girl immediately spin around.
"wha—"
"severus over here had invited us over after we heard about your special mission", bellatrix crazily grinned, making victoria's lips dry.
the girl glared at snape, who simply was not affected whatsoever.
there was no way snape had singlehandedly brought the death eaters into hogwarts, as the school had many protective charms protecting it.
unless...unless dumbledore had allowed so as headmaster. it wouldn't be too out of normality, as victoria could assume that snape worked as a double agent like her. though for what reason, she wasn't sure. and snape did damn well hiding his identity from the others.
"well? what are you waiting for? aren't you going to kill the old wizard?", bellatrix urged, twirling around the girl as she maniacally giggled.
"v-victoria?"
as if things couldn't get any more tense, draco had showed up along with his father, who apparently was let out of azkaban on voldemort's orders.
"you brought him here?", victoria stiffly questioned, making bellatrix just hum.
"dark lord's orders", bellatrix giggled, making victoria tightly grip her wand, making her knuckles nearly white.
"come on now! don't keep us all waiting", bellatrix once again urged, making victoria turn back to dumbledore, who had on a neutral expression.
"think wisely victoria", dumbledore softly murmured.
to those that didn't know, it would've sounded like a plea for mercy. but victoria knew better.
"EXPELLIARMUS!"
immediately, dumbledore's wand flew out of his hand and rolled onto the ground of the astronomy tower.
victoria tightened her grip as she took a deep breath in.
'you can do this. for draco. for draco. for draco'.
"avada kedavra", victoria breathlessly casted as she pointed her basilisk cored wand at the most brilliant wizard of all times.
dumbledore's body toppled over the railings as he felt his last moments slow flash right before his eyes.
victoria covered her mouth from puking as she had just killed someone. she was a murderer. the very character she didn't want draco to especially see.
"MORSMORDRE!!", bellatrix screamed in excitement as the clouds above them faded into dark grey and the dark mark was conjured.
students all around hurried outside as the death eaters hastily exited the tower, leaving victoria standing alone.
"victoria—"
"GO AWAY! GO! I'M AN ABSOLUTE MONSTER! LEAVE ME ALONE!!", victoria frustratingly yelled, completely breaking down as she fell onto her knees and dropped her wand.
draco hurried towards the shattered girl and embraced her, pitying her current position. he wasn't sure if he would've been able to handle it if he was tasked to kill dumbledore.
"shhh, I'm here aren't I?", draco comforted.
"why", the girl sobbed out.
draco cupped the girl's cheek as he kissed the top of her forehead.
"I've said it many times and I'll say it again. it's because I love you. I'll say it as many times that it takes you to understand it", draco cooed, brushing through the girl's silvery locks to calm her down.
victoria then looked up into draco's loving eyes.
"but I won't ever be able to understand", the girl croaked out, only making draco smile.
"then I suppose I'll have to keep saying it forever", the boy whispered as he placed a soft kiss on the girl's lips.
victoria cracked a very small smile, letting draco know that she was feeling a little better.
"oh what would I do without you draco?"
"I don't know love. what would you have done without me?"
at that moment, victoria noir had her answer. if it weren't for draco malfoy, she would've been the master of death.
if it weren't for draco malfoy, she would've never felt such security, such warmth, such a thing as close as love.
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