(A/N: Want to read ahead of what I have posted so far? Go to my Patreоn and get your early access chapters :3

By becoming a patron, you'll instantly unlock access up to 29 chapters (Chapter 183 already!) ??

/HPMan

Thank you for your support! Enjoy new chapters!

______________________

"Where are you going?" Just around the corner into the nearest dead-end courtyard, in a sort of dark alleyway, Draco and his companions came at me. The guys already seen in the restaurant were joined by Crabbe and Goyle. I had neither the time nor the desire to play with them, however. I simply pulled out my wand at top speed and very quickly conjured a series of Stupefy for everyone but Malfoy. Only Daphne had time to cover herself with the Protego. Immediately grabbing the weak blond by the chest with one hand, I slammed him against the wall a couple of times to be sure, immediately covering myself with Protego from some kind of stunning performed by Daphne.

"I'm sick of you, Malfoy," I hissed in the frightened boy's face, holding the Protego Totalus orb. "I don't know, and I don't want to know if you're pretending to be an idiot or if you really are that stupid. But I'm warning you one last time. If you come at me, I'll hurt you so bad your mother won't recognize you, do you understand me? I said, do you understand me?!"

Malfoy nodded convulsively, and eventually, I let the boy go, slid my hand along the wand, transferring the Protego's feeding to my free hand, and put the unfortunate guy to sleep.

"Lord, ha..."

I turned to Daphne, who was confidently aiming her wand at me. I arched my eyebrow questioningly.

"Well, what questions do you have for me, young lady?" historical

"What were you talking to my mother about?" her tone was confident and insistent.

"Mother? Hmm, so Lady Delphine is your mother? I'll keep that in mind."

Daphne was clearly surprised by the answer.

"So you didn't know she was my mother?"

"Why would I know that?"

Fatty Crabbe and Goyle began to come to their senses. Taking off Protego's Totalus immediately sent a weak disarming into Daphne, only to have her wand knocked out, not like Snape sent Lockhart into a flight. I intercepted the girl's wand and once again sent a series of Stupefy into the recovering losers. They don't learn anything, though I have to give credit for my speed under the boost, but still...

"Why should I know who mom is for whom?"

Twirling Daphne's wand in my hands, I smirked at the petty nastiness brewing in my head.

"I'll send a wand to your family. I think Lady Delphine will be pleased to know that her daughter has been messing around in the company of feeble-minded Slytherins in the dark alleys of evening London."

"Don't you..."

Taking a step into the shadows, habitually concealing myself with a complex of concealment charms, I remained watching.

"...dare," the girl finished confusedly.

Of course, I wasn't going to leave, because really, the girl was alone, in an alley, without her wand, and there were a bunch of paralyzed idiots around. I had gone a little overboard with the last Stupefy - who knows when the guys will wake up.

The girl was at a loss for a while but quickly began to bring Nott back to his senses, first Nott, then Parkinson. When it came to the big guys Crabbe and Goyle, I left the place with a clear conscience, and I took the bus to Grimmauld's house, leaving the Diagon Alley through the leaky cauldron.

"Lady Walburga," greeted the portrait of my great-aunt with a nod and sat down in the chair that Kreacher never put away. "Why didn't you tell me that Delphine Greengrass is my mother's peer?"

"Was it necessary?"

"That would have been nice. For some reason that I don't understand, I was preparing to meet a more conservative lady a generation older. Okay, let's put that nuance aside. Let's just say it was a pleasant surprise."

"If Delphine has agreed to teach you, you'll soon hate her. Didn't you notice anything strange? Well, if you think about it."

"Other than the fact that she looks obscenely young for her age?"

"Eh, you'll figure it out later. Will you tell me about the contract?"

"She will train me for a month and see what I'm like, and then we'll decide.

"Don't make a mistake," Walburga said very seriously. "Give it your all. Does the contract have clauses about all kinds of non-disclosure and non-personal use of secrets?"

"There are."

"Give it your all. Only then will Delphine be able to realize your potential, and if it's really good, she'll take you on as a full apprentice."

That was the end of the conversation with Walburga, and I went home to pack.