3. The Cursed Child

Delphi

Deep in the Amazon rainforest, a young woman named Delphi tied her silver hair into a ponytail, wand in hand, waiting for the signal. She was a bit nervous—she had already failed several times, and if she failed again, Mr. Lestrange would punish her once more. She missed the days before he arrived, when the training wasn't as intense or as dangerous. She had spent her entire life training and studying to kill Harry Potter, a destiny she couldn't escape. 

It was midday, and the heat was unbearable. Delphi wanted to get this over with as soon as possible, whether she failed or not. She just wanted to finish and go see Voltrix. Suddenly, she saw red sparks in the distance in the sky—it was the signal. She ran as fast as she could. For now, there were only trees around her. She had to reach the top of the mountain a few kilometers ahead. 

Delphi was running when she heard a buzzing sound, like a thousand bees. Various colored lights were heading toward her, resembling fireworks. The girl gripped her wand and conjured a shield around herself. All the spells bounced off without harming her. Satisfied, she continued toward the next challenge in the circuit. 

Next was the transformation test, her favorite, though the last time she had almost lost her life. She arrived at a clearing where several servants awaited her, their heads covered by their usual black robes. Beside them were cages containing jaguars, pumas, and other big cats. 

—My lady, we need a new set of dishes, —said a chubby, hooded figure. Then, all the cages opened. The servants waved their wands, and the big cats lunged at Delphi. 

—Very funny, Igor, —she replied, not amused at all. —And don't call me lady. I'm only eighteen. 

A puma approached from her right, and just as it was about to pounce, Delphi flicked her wand and turned it into a lovely blue teacup. 

—I hope you like blue, Igor, —the girl shouted, smiling. 

It was a shame to turn pumas and jaguars into cups, plates, teapots, and cutlery, but oh well, all in the name of completing the test, Delphi thought. Only a few big cats remained, but without her noticing, they had surrounded her. They all pounced at once. 

—Immobulus! —Delphi shouted immediately. That caught her off guard—using a non-verbal spell would cost her points. 

—And I hope you like lead, —said Igor as Delphi finished transforming the beasts. 

—What! —she exclaimed. 

Then, there was a tremor from deep within the jungle. Delphi looked in the direction of the sound and started running for her life. A stampede of elephants was heading straight for her. "I'm going to kill him," she thought, but first, she had to deal with this. She ran to higher ground and waited for the herd. She was a little scared and thought of her father. From what she had been told, he had never been afraid of anything. As a child, she had admired that, but now she just thought it was stupid. Everyone is afraid of something. 

Facing the herd, Delphi magically propelled herself onto the head of the nearest elephant. From there, she began casting spells left and right, transforming the elephants into mice. That nearly drained her completely—transfiguration required a lot of concentration and energy. With her wand, she conjured a whip and urged the elephant she was riding to carry her to the next test. 

The third test was diving through a lake. Using a Bubble-Head Charm, Delphi had to fight off several aquatic creatures. With many scratches, she emerged victorious. After crossing the lake, she entered a cavern, dried her clothes with a wave of her wand, and pressed on. 

The next test involved fighting a magical creature. She had never been able to pass this part. The beasts Mr. Lestrange brought were incredibly strong—last time, she had almost been eaten by a horned serpent. He had promised that if she didn't pass this time, he would bring a dragon next. She gripped her holly wand, with a core of basilisk fang, given to her by Voltrix. This wand had been handed to her by Rodolphus when Delphi was nine years old. It was said to be the last wand made by Garrick Ollivander. It was an incredibly powerful wand, difficult to craft, and had been given to her as a reward for successfully completing her first dark magic project. Delphi was a young woman with immense magical power, allowing her to learn and master almost any branch of magic, even the versatile dark arts. After all, her parents were great dark wizards. 

The girl ventured deeper into the cave until she heard a snorting sound. From the shadows emerged a large, quadrupedal creature with a grayish-purple hide, a humped back, and long, sharp golden horns—a Graphorn. 

The Graphorn charged at her, trying to gore her with its horns, but she managed to conjure a shield just in time. The beast reared up on its hind legs, trying to find an opening in the magical barrier. Delphi couldn't hold the shield much longer and dove to the side. The beast crashed down, shaking the entire cavern. Delphi quickly got to her feet and conjured black ropes from the tip of her wand. The ropes coiled around the Graphorn, immobilizing it. Since no spell could pierce its thick hide, she set the ropes on fire. The creature roared in pain and began to thrash. 

—Wait! —Delphi shouted, pulling hard on her wand. 

The beast's strength was so great that when it broke free from the ropes, Delphi couldn't hold onto her wand, which flew out of her hand. The Graphorn, still engulfed in flames, glared furiously at the witch and prepared for a final charge. Her wand was out of reach—there was nothing she could do. If only she had practiced more wandless magic, if only she were free from this cursed legacy. She closed her eyes and covered her head. Suddenly, she heard a hissing sound and something slithering, followed by a thud. 

—You can open your eyes now. —It was a voice composed of hisses and whispers, seemingly coming from inside her head. 

Delphi opened her eyes and found the Graphorn dead, with no visible wounds except for the flames still burning its body. Beside it was Voltrix, her deadly yellow eyes and green scaly skin gleaming in the cavern.

—Thank you —said Delphi in Parseltongue, the language of snakes. Voltrix was a basilisk over 15 meters long and half a meter wide, which she had raised herself as a child. It had been her only and best friend ever since—. Though technically, it's cheating. 

A basilisk's gaze is deadly to anyone except its master. Many servants had died when Voltrix was in the cabin. When Lord Lestrange arrived, despite the young girl's tantrums, her pet had to move near a lake. It wouldn't stop growing, and they were running out of servants. 

—What does it matter? —hissed Voltrix—. He won't find out. 

She brought her mistress's wand and then went to devour the graphorn. Delphi was quite exhausted, but she was almost done. With little effort, she managed to exit the cave and found herself at the foot of the mountain. In that place, enormous floating stones stood vertically like a platforming game. She had to jump from stone to stone to reach the top. Of course, the stones were set very high—this was a flying test. 

Delphi ran and leaped, propelled by magic, jumping from stone to stone until she could remain in the air, enveloped in a silver aura. Satisfied with herself, she sped up more and more until the stones around her started flying toward her. She gripped her wand and shattered each approaching stone until she reached the top. Upon arrival, she fell to her knees, exhausted. It was almost nightfall. 

There stood a tall, thin man with graying hair and a stern gaze. His arms were crossed, and in one hand, he held a black wand. His time in Azkaban had taken its toll, but even so, Rodolphus Lestrange emanated the aura of an intimidating being. 

—I did it —said Delphi, standing up. 

—Not yet —said Rodolphus expressionlessly—. One more test remains. 

—Which one? 

—Duel. —Without warning, the Death Eater attacked, sending a black lightning bolt from his wand. Delphi conjured a shield just in time, neutralizing the spell until it dissipated. 

The witch counterattacked with a flurry of spells, which Lestrange dodged or made vanish into his cloak. 

—What's the matter? Is that all you've got? Didn't those slaves teach you anything? —Rodolphus said angrily—. You are not worthy of calling yourself our Lord's daughter. Come on, show me that spell I taught you. 

"Not worthy? As if I had asked for this," Delphi thought to herself. So many years locked away in that fortress—she barely knew the outside world. Everything she knew about it, Igor had taught her. From the servants, she had only learned that she had a task to fulfill: Kill Harry Potter. 

They had told her he had killed her parents, that he was the reason they now lived in hiding, and that he was hunting her down to kill her. As a child, all of this terrified her. Igor was the only one who reassured her. When she asked if it was all true, he only answered that he wouldn't let anyone harm her. 

As she grew, Delphi started believing that the truly scared ones were the servants, and she began doubting their words. 

Perhaps it was true that Harry Potter had killed her parents, and that he was to blame for her confinement. Yet, she couldn't feel the hatred that everyone else had toward him. It was impossible for her to hate someone she didn't know, and the same went for love—how could she love parents she had never met? 

Delphi wasn't sure what she felt. Everything seemed confusing and suffocating. Carrying a burden she never asked for, fulfilling the wishes of others—that was her daily life. And if she ever faced Harry Potter, she wouldn't do it without first demanding answers. Answers she needed but that no one could or wanted to give her. 

Delphi refocused on the battle. The spell Lord Lestrange wanted her to cast took time to conjure, but its power was devastating. She made a cut on her hand with her wand. As her blood flowed, it turned black and began to float in the air, taking the shape of a living, writhing black orb. 

—Come on, aim here if you dare —said Rodolphus, pointing at his chest. 

The orb grew larger and larger until it reached the size of a football. Delphi hurled it straight at Lestrange, who vanished into black smoke just before the spell touched him. The orb crashed into the jungle, causing an explosion and a black fire that consumed the surrounding trees—until seconds later, it extinguished itself. 

—How dare you! That almost hit me —Rodolphus shouted, reappearing a few meters away from the witch. 

The old Death Eater launched another black lightning bolt, but this time, Delphi was ready. She countered with a silver ray. Both spells clashed, pushing against each other. Lestrange found himself overwhelmed by the young woman's strength and shouted: 

—Now. 

Without her noticing, several servants had surrounded her. At their master's command, they immobilized her from all directions. 

—You did well, but you are not ready yet. —That was the last thing Delphi heard before she lost consciousness. 

She found herself in a small, somewhat old room. In front of her stood a man with a pointed nose and a silver beard. He was speaking, but she couldn't hear him. Suddenly, the wardrobe beside her caught fire. She felt fear and awe toward that man. 

But above all, she felt anger—a great, burning anger... 

—My lady, wake up! Quickly, wake up! 

Delphi opened her eyes to find Igor shaking her. She was still half-asleep. Had it been a dream, or a nightmare? 

—What's going on, Igor? —she asked. 

—My lady, there are intruders! We're under attack! This is your chance to escape. 

—Who? —Delphi wanted to leave, but what about Voltrix? 

—Aurors. Potter is here.