"There is no evil in sorcery. Only in the hearts of men."
- Merlin
Almost everyone in the wizard community know who the Weasley Family is; an old line of purebloods with red hair, freckles and enough children to start their own Quidditch team. But S...
EMPATHY DOES NOT GET RESULTS ✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧
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"You're late," Tom said, raising an eyebrow as if to silently demand an explanation as to why she dared to arrive late to their meeting. Something told Seraphina that he wasn't used to being kept waiting.
"I'm sorry, but I do have a job," Seraphina reminded him, "and I got here as fast as I could." Balancing a job, babysitting her nephews, a boyfriend and secret meetings with the Dark Lord proved to be even more difficult than studying for final exams. "And I'm only five minutes late."
"Eight," Tom corrected her.
"That's almost five," Seraphina argued.
"It's closer to ten than five," Tom pointed out in return.
"It's closer to zero than twenty — so technically I'm early," Seraphina retorted, crossing her arms like a defiant child.
"What?" Tom asked. "That doesn't make sense."
"Let's agree to disagree," Seraphina told him. "So, what are we doing today?"
"You've made greater progress than I expected," Tom said, his dry tone making it sound more like a statement than a compliment. "Therefore, we are going to test out a — theory — today."
"A theory?" Seraphina asked.
"Yes, something your mother wasn't capable of doing, but I think you may," Tom revealed. "From what I've seen these past weeks, Seraphina, your powers exceed anything your mother ever possessed — even though she had many more years to practise."
"Okay," Seraphina said, not knowing if she was supposed to thank him for the compliment. "Could you be any more vague?"
"I want to see if you can turn into a dragon," Tom said bluntly.
Seraphina's eyes widened in surprise. At first she was certain she'd misheard him because it sounded utterly ludicrous. Turning into a dragon — she'd never heard of anything like it.
"I'm not an animagus," Seraphina told him, recalling the complicated process that the Marauders went through.
"No, maybe not," Tom said with a small twist of his lip. "But you're also not a regular witch. According to some legends, Merlin was capable of turning into a dragon at will. But it takes a great amount of power that most of your ancestors simply haven't possessed."
"Tom," Seraphina smiled sweetly, "Tommy. Can I call you Tommy?"
"No," Tom replied with a scowl.
"Tommy," Seraphina said either way, "how do you expect me to turn into a bloody dragon if no one in my family since Merlin has been able to do it?"
"There is only one way to find out," Tom ignored the new nickname. "The only way to obtain more power is to push your limits. The only thing you've been taught in school is the limits the ministry has put on your magical abilities — but there is so much beyond that."
Something about the way he spoke of her power unnerved Sera. But she didn't let it show as she said, "Okaay, just tell me what to do then. I assume it's not enough to just think 'I want to be a dragon' because honestly — then I would have turned into a dragon years ago."
"Your assumption is correct," Tom said, entirely unimpressed by her attitude. "It will require a great deal of concentration and magic. And a bit less snark."
"Aren't dragons known for being rather snarky with their attitude?" Seraphina asked innocently, earning a harsh glare from Tom. "Sorry," she apologised, remembering that she probably shouldn't push the Dark Lord's buttons in the way she did everyone else's. "What do you wish for me to do then?"
"Close your eyes," Tom instructed her.
"Why does all your teaching always begin like that?" Seraphina asked him but she did obey and closed her eyes — it had helped her concentration in the past.
Completely ignoring her question, he continued, "Envision a dragon," Tom continued, once more circling around her as she tried to follow his instructions.
The moment Seraphina thought about a dragon, a scarlet red one appeared in her mind. It was weird because it didn't look like any of the species she'd read about with its scarlet wings and bright blue eyes.
The dragon twisted his neck and it almost felt like it was looking straight at her — even though all of it was in her head. Magic surged through her veins, creating that tingling sensation she'd grown accustomed to when channelling her magic.
At first the dragon seemed far away and blurry but it soon grew larger and more clear to her. But as the dragon grew stronger, Seraphina felt herself grow weaker. Eventually it all became too much for her — so much that she dropped to her knees, landing on the muddy ground completely exhausted.
Opening her eyes again, Seraphina breathed heavily as her heart beat rapidly in her chest. "I can't," Seraphina shook her head.
"Of course you won't be able to do it in the first try," Tom rolled his eyes, a self-satisfied look on his face. "But you've gotten closer to transforming in your first attempt than your mother ever did — that shows great promise."
Each time Tom mentioned her mother, Seraphina started questioning what she truly knew of the woman. Dumbledore had told her Voldemort killed her mother for refusing to join him but not much more. But the way Tom spoke about her — it sounded like they knew each other.
Bumping her arm with the tip of his shoe, Tom said, "Get up and try again."
"Empathy is not your strong suit, Tommy," Seraphina sent him a glare as she slowly got back up onto her feet.
"Empathy does not get results," Tom replied monotonously. "Now we try again."
. • ⚯͛ • .
More weeks passed and Seraphina often met up with Tom in the same place. Nearly every lesson was now devoted to trying to turn into a dragon and more often than not, Seraphina had to spin some lie to her loved ones about why she came home looking like she'd faint.
Not until the beginning of December, when a layer of snow covered every inch of the forest they practised in, that Seraphina finally succeeded — even though it didn't quite go as she'd expected.
It felt like all of her bones were bending and twisting uncomfortably as her body transformed. The amount of magic used forced Tom to take a step back as the winds picked up around them.
When Seraphina stretched her arms, her wings brushed against the ground and she got to experience the weird sensation of having a tail. Opening her eyes, she expected everything to be tiny but instead she found herself facing a large shoe.
Lifting her head, Seraphina let out a scream —- which came out as a shrill screech — when she found herself looking up at Tom. That's when she realised she'd become smaller. Twisting her long neck, Seraphina observed the scarlet scales covering her body in awe.
She was a dragon...
A bloody dragon...
Tom crouched down next to her, a rare smile on his face, "Marvellous," he praised her with a twisted smirk. "Absolutely brilliant."
