"The only thing worse than a boy who hates you: a boy that loves you."

― Markus Zusak

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"Brother!! What brings you here!" Waiola grins at Theseus.

Theseus's eyes obviously soften when he glances at his sister. With his stunning blue eyes, slicked back chestnut hair, and a muscular body fit of an Auror, he was obviously an extremely attractive man.

"Just saying hello to my sister and her family. Can't a man do that?" He smiles, not taking his eyes off us.

"This is too weird." Abaddon hisses in my head. "I feel like I've met him before." My demon continues.

"I know," I whisper unconsciously, causing Tom to give me a weird look.

"What a duel!" He whistles, strolling forward.

"UNCLE THESEUS!" Claude bellows and rams into the stranger. He almost knocks the man off his feet. It was kinda funny.

"Claude." The Auror greets warmly, hugging his nephew back lovingly. He holds him close to him. A girl walks out, looking annoyed as hell.

"WHAT is all the damn noise about!? I can't hear myself think!" She screeches, glaring at everyone and anyone.

"Zan!" Claude exclaims, excitedly running up to hug the girl. He actually knocks her off her feet this time.

"CLAUDE ZABINI GET OFF ME BEFORE I KICK YOU IN YOUR JEWELS!" She shrieks from her spot on the floor.

"Claude, get off your cousin." Sabra scolds lightly, trying to help her limping wife move.

"Just heal her." I snap at her, annoyed. Tom snickers cruelly at my response. "Did I say something funny?" I raise a brow at him, threatening.

"Yes." He muses, not missing a beat. I groan exasperated.

"Calm down, Val. You reacted impeccably, given the circumstances." Pan declares as the rest of the gang walked towards us.

"Given the circumstances?!" I scoff. "You try being attacked by a freaking Seqimotor curse, then you can judge based on circumstance." I was incredibly petty.

"What's so horrible about it?" Gideon asks, making everyone turn to gape at him.

Tom raises his wand at Gideon, and I whip around narrowing my eyes at him

"Don't you dare curse him with it, Tom!!"

"He asked." Tom shrugs.

"He technically did," Mulciber whispers to Chris, who agrees.

"Even though he saw what Valentine did to get away." Chris nods along.

"I say do it. Curse the kid." Nott chortles, face impassive.

"How about I curse you with it!" Pan snaps.

"Do it, Lovegood." Nott hisses.

"Gladly, Theodore." She demands back, calling Nott by his first name. Tom's friends were the only members of their family attending Hogwarts. They had an extreme view on blood purity and preferred to be referred to by their last names...that way everyone knew how pure their blood was.

Ahhh, the good old days of being in Slytherin.

How I loved making fun of the twins and Harry. Pranking Flitch was always a fantastic end to any day. Reading with Percy during the evenings was an astounding destresser..... hanging with Luna and Ettie. The thoughts make a stab of homesickness go through me.

"Ah, let me introduce myself to the master duelists!" Theseus beams, walking towards us and holding his hand out for Tom to shake.

Tom plants one of his charming, fake smiles on and shakes the Auror's hand. I could tell the smile was fake because his eyes were as cold as always. His smile was more terrifying than anything.

Theseus moves to shake my hand, and I give him a similar smile to Tom's, reaching out to shake his hand. The second my hand touches his, a voice sounds in my mind.

"Valentine Dumbledore!!! Defeat Riddle before twilight of the fifth year. Raze the snake. Crown your head."

The memory comes unexpectedly, and the vision that comes next is even more unexpected.

A black orb pulsed in the middle of a cold, cold snow infested field. The sounds coming from it blasted in my ears, causing me to cringe. It was surrounded by a protective dome. It was alive...I realized. That thing was alive. It was hissing like it had its own language.

The hissing sound continues as I'm transported through the memories of this living thing. I watch in stunned silence as it manages to kill and wipe out five fully trained Aurors in a single screech. The hissing was getting louder.

It killed them all with a single strike, that blew up the very grounds they stood on, engulfing it in flames.

The creature skids through the streets and outskirts of a town, utterly destroying everything in its path. It was enraged. It was on a rampage.

I could feel it's anger.

I could feel its fear.

Buildings demolished, pavements destroyed, cars beyond repair. Screams of muggles.

It could fly.

Invisibility it seemed was its forte. I was there during every moment just standing and staring, helpless.

I watch as it kills a man, snapping its neck by making it look like he'd seemed possessed. The man had been running for president, it seemed. It looked like the thing hated politics.

Then I finally got some information. A red-haired man looks back, from his place being investigated. A dark-haired man was levitating the creature. Every hiss of his grew louder and louder until my ears felt like they were bleeding. The red-haired man stared at me. "That's an Obscurus." He breathes in amazement.

The next scene shows me Grindelwald battling a group of Aurors. They couldn't touch him. He was engulfed in a ring of blue flames. The blue flames seemed to burn anyone who got too close and even Theseus was having trouble controlling them. "NO CREDENCE!" Nagini screams, and the sound makes me flinch back. 

I'm ripped out of the vision like I'd been drowning, and someone pulled me back up for air. I stumble back, eyes wide in confusion.

Tom knew exactly what had happened from the look in my eyes.

"What did you see?" He asks instantly. I don't answer right away, eyes still on Theseus in confusion.

"Nice to meet you too," I say finally, interrupting the awkward silence.

Theseus beams and calls over Zan. "This is my daughter Zalania." He introduces us. The girl, whom Claude had called Zan earlier stares at us silently.

"Let's go inside for lunch, shall we?" Waiola offers, grinning now that she was all ready and healed.

"Lovely idea!" Theseus claps his hands together, and the family starts to make their way inside. Tom and I linger outside, eyeing each other.

"Well?" Tom asks in my head, not wanting to risk anyone hearing this.

I look up, biting my lip deep in thought. Holding out my hand, I offer it to him. "See for yourself. I don't know what to make of it." I grumble. He grabs my hand, and I watch the series of events replay again for Tom's eyes.

"An Obscurus?" Tom questions finally, and I nod, also confused.

"What the hell is an Obscurus?" I mumble to myself

"I... I don't know." Tom admits.

"YOU TWO!! INSIDE NOW!" Sabra screeches. "STOP COMMUNICATING TELEPATHICALLY!"

"That woman is seriously getting on my nerves." Tom scowls.

"Want to kill her?" I ask, honestly contemplating it.

"She's Claude's mother."

"Damn it."

"Plus, we are guests here." His words cause me to scowl even more.

"I'm just going to aggressively ignore this part of my life until it goes away." I decide, finally. making him shake his head, rolling his eyes.

"That's not going to work, Dumpling."

"How would you know Thomas!?"

"Could you stop calling me that? At least make up a better nickname if you insist on mocking me." He sighs.

"The point of a nickname it to annoy you. I think I got that covered." I grin, gesturing to the scowl on his face.

"INSIDE NOW!" Waiola screeches this time.

"I think they were banshees in their previous lives." I point out, as we start to head inside.

"This coming from you?" Tom snickers.

"Hey, my acting skills have been an asset so far. Don't mock them!" I snap back.

"Screaming does not equal acting. I act as if I tolerate you on a daily basis....that's good acting."

"YOU MENTION THAT YOU HATE ME AT LEAST ONCE A DAY!!!"

"I haven't killed you yet."

"I'd like to see you freaking try. I'd blow up your stupid insufferable head."

"Like you should've done the first moment you saw him." Abaddon pipes up dryly.

"You seriously have an issue with that. You should get therapy."

"HA! This coming from the anti-social psychopath."

"Therapists are nothing but a waste of money and time." He scowls.

"Then why do you want me to see one?" I demand gaping at him.

"Because you're also a waste of my time and space."

"Says the person still talking to me."

We enter the room, still bantering back and forth, back and forth.

"You'll get used to it," Claude tells his cousin, who was staring between us back and forth, head zipping from side to side.

"Tom, Valentine. Seeing as you two have so much extra energy. Go get the cutlery." Waiola calls from her place on the table. Tom and I stare at each other for a second and sigh in unison. We enter the kitchen, packaging all the cutlery on a bunch of plates, separated between us.

We stop at the entrance into the dining room, just staring at the people all around us.

"Can we hit them with our knives?" I ask Tom, who's lips twitch upwards in amusement.

"The technical term is stab.... and no."

"Why!?" I whine, following him and staring to set the table with him.

"Because I don't want to have to help you clean up the mess after. That's tedious and boring." He starts to speak telepathically, considering the vast amount of people in the room now.

"I can't believe you think murder is boring."

"If you say what I think you're about to say-"

"That's psychotic."

Tom glares at me from across the room, and I glare back.

"Why are you two glaring at each other?" Mulciber asks.

"Reginald, you don't want to get involved." Claude snips at Mulciber, calling him by his first name. The lethal look Claude got in return was hilarious.

"We're seeing who will spontaneously combust first," I answer Mulciber, making Tom's eyes raise in humour.

"That would be you." He pipes back.

"No... Tom. After the Fiendfyre incident, I'm pretty sure you would combust." Avery snips, grabbing the plates from me in an effort to help. I smile at him in appreciation.

"No one asked you, Axton." Tom snides to Avery.

"Don't call me that Thomas." Avery snaps, and I gape at Tom.

"It's not just me that calls you that???" I burst out laughing.

"You ever call me that again that Fiendfyre trick you performed will be NOTHING compared to the pain I will expose you to." Tom snarls, the joking persona instantly disappearing.

"Hey. You called him by his first name first!" Abby defends her boyfriend. "You know how much he hates that name!"

"Of course I do Abigail, that's why I said it."

Abby grits her teeth at the name and holds out her wand threateningly. This makes Tom smirk in his usual harsh amusement.

"Now. Now. Children. Let us calm down." Theseus muses, eyeing us disapprovingly.

"Abby, you know you can't win a duel with Tom. He'd obliterate you." Waiola croons dryly, making Abby even more furious.

"I've been practicing."

"Yeah, well, so has he." Avery chides, grabbing his girlfriend by the waist and placing her behind him. "Let's go, Abs." He moves her away, protectively, and I scoff.

"Look at that. Avery protecting his girl." Tom snides.

"Of course. I, for one, tend to care about the girl I have feelings for." Avery scowls at Tom, making his face contort into one of rage.

"What does that mean?" He snarls.

"You know exactly what I mean, Riddle!"

"Everyone shut up! LUNCH NOW!" Sabra scowls, hands on her hips. She was in an apron, glaring at us. "Stop acting like insolent children, you scoundrels. If I hear another word, I will hex all of you with a curse worse than what Waiola hit Val with.

"I actually deflected that curse so?"

"Valentine, shut up!" Everyone scowls at me, making me glare at everyone.

"Who crawled up all your arses and died?" I snapped, walking away and plopping into my dinner chair.

Theseus and Zan sit across from me. Greta and Gideon sit on my sides.

"It's not so bad." Greta tries to soothe me, placing a hand on my arm.

"Yeah, at least nothing is on fire this time." Gideon drawls, making us turn on his to give him disbelieving looks.

"Seriously, Gideon," Greta demands. She turns to me and smiles.

"How's the protective barrier I placed around your house?" I ask Greta's twin brother, and he smiles.

"Amazing. Thanks again for that, Val. No one can hurt us anymore." He gives me a grateful look, and I smile back at him.

"So how did you learn spells like that?" Theseus asks me suddenly. I turn to look at him, feeling his legitimacy start to enter my mind. I cut it off the second he tired. He involuntarily winces, glancing up at me in impressed surprise.

"Dad. Stop trying to read people's minds. It's creepy." Zalania retorts, stuffing a spoonful of food into her mouth.

I point my own spoon at her and nod. "I completely agree."

He gives me an unapologetic shrug. "I'm an Auror. Curiosity is part of the job."

"Is stalking a part of the job too?" I drawl mischievously.

He chokes on his food.

He starts dying, coughing hard and eyes watering. "Theseus!" Waiola hands her brother a glass of water. "Are you alright!?" She demands, and I raise a brow at him.

"Yes. Yes. Fine. Just went down the wrong pipe." He waves his sister away. He eyes me in silent appreciation, his lips twitching upwards.

"Stalking? Stalking? What do you mean?" Zalania asks me, blunt and to the point. She looked like her father. Same blue eyes. Same hair colour. She was a mini girl version of the man. The only thing that differed was her personality. She was exceedingly more open and blunt. Less conscious of her actions and words. She had no filter.

My kind of girl.

"Reading someone's mind is stalking them, is it not?" I murmur, swallowing a spoonful of my soup, with a smirk.

"Dumbledore shut up." Tom hisses in my mind.

"You need to calm down. I'm baiting him." I tell him."I need him to admit it."

"Admit what?!" He scowls.

"Yes, I suppose so," Zalania mutters, giving her father a look. But Theseus's eyes were trailing from my form to Tom's in blatant curiosity.

Tom sat on the other side of the table, just staring at his food, acting like he wasn't listening to our every word.

"Apologies," Theseus states, finally.

I flicker my eyes upwards to meet his blue eyes. The ocean and the sky clash in a battle of the ages. My lips curve downwards, disapproving and I tilt my head at him, mockingly

"Just don't do it again."

"You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching,
Love like you'll never be hurt,
Sing like there's nobody listening,
And live like it's heaven on earth."

― William W. Purkey