Venom & Virtue

chapter 1

Kingsley rapped his knuckles loudly against the large wooden doors, pausing after three as we waited for an answer.

I glanced upwards towards the stormy sky, watching the lightning scatter itself across the brooding darkness.

I adjusted the angle of my wand, ensuring that the invisible umbrella was keeping us fully protected from the dense rain.

Kingsley let out a resigned huff causing my attention to focus back upon him.

"It seems that no one is here, perhaps we should apparate back to London and give up on the endeavour?" I offered hopefully.

"That suggestion didn't work the first time, do you really suppose it would work the tenth?"

"I thought it was worth the try at least," I sighed.

"No matter, I'll send a patronus to McGonagall."

He pulled the wand from his robes and chanted the spell, relaying the news of our arrival to the floating Lynx before it ran off through the night.

"I don't see why I can't simply come with you to Mongolia. I promise to be useful."

"You know that auror missions are no place for an underage witch."

"I'm not a child, you don't have to treat me like one," I quirked an eyebrow at his towering figure beside me.

"You may not be 8 years old anymore, but you are still my responsibility until you're of age. Your safety isn't up for discussion," he spoke authoritatively.

I knew the steely tone of voice all too well, it was the same one he reserved for the Ministry trials.

It meant that his decision was final.

I shifted on my feet impatiently, frustrated with the nature of the situation.

I had spent the entire month of August attempting to convince him to take me on the mission across the globe, but he had refused repeatedly.

Despite the knowledge I'd gained from spending the last 9 years by his side, he still insisted that I wasn't prepared enough for field work.

After one particularly hot day in his office, when he'd spent a draining twenty minutes ranting about the dangers of the Dark Arts and combative environments, I'd almost given up.

Although I didn't ever admit it out loud, I knew that he was right in some sense.

My head was full of all the theory regarding duelling magic, but I'd never had the need to put it into practice, aside from in the training rooms.

Having Britain's leading auror as my substitute guardian prevented even a semblance of danger from reaching me, both a comforting blessing, and shielded boredom.

And now here I was, standing outside Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, awaiting my acceptance into formal education for the first time in my life.

It wasn't an idea that had ever appealed to me, and I had almost managed to avoid the ordeal entirely.

Until today.

I opened my mouth once again to offer a rebuttal, but the doors were thrown open before I could speak.

The large wooden structures creaked inwards to reveal a stern figure standing expectantly in the foyer.