The Wolf and the Lioness - A lioness Fury. (Patreon)

Lily Evans, Number 4 Privet Drive – Surrey.

An emerald flash illuminated one of the most forgotten alleyways of Privet Drive, one far removed from the main residential area and quite close to the underpass that led toward England's dreary fields.

The magical anomaly was so sudden that nearby birds and animals fled in terror, just as three silhouettes emerged through the strange arcane threshold, which closed behind them an instant later, allowing the silence and tranquility one might expect in this kind of neighborhood to settle over the place once more.

Three figures had emerged beneath the cover of dusk. Two feminine silhouettes concealed beneath dark robes, neither particularly tall, but both elegant and feminine, while the third belonged to Aegon, the evident leader of the trio, the man and cornerstone of Lily's life, considerably taller and more imposing than either Ciri or herself.

"That was… unexpected. I expected the Hunt to be on our heels by now," the young dragon confessed with what Lily could only assume was disappointment in his voice.

At those words, Ciri chuckled softly and answered with a smug expression.

"You have your tricks, and I have mine, my love. We have a window of opportunity, a couple of hours at most, so the sooner we return to Grimmauld Place, the better," the ash-haired princess declared as the trio began walking.

Ciri walked with her arms crossed, looking around with curiosity and a hint of disappointment, while Aegon, on the other hand, carried a beautiful magical staff in his hands, one that radiated such monstrous magical power that the witch couldn't help shuddering merely from being near it.

It was as though her very magic trembled in the presence of the powerful artifact.

"That thing is extraordinarily powerful," the redheaded witch declared with extreme caution, swallowing nervously as she watched the imposing magical artifact pulse in Aegon's hand. Apparently, he was using it as some kind of radar to locate Harry.

Aegon merely regarded her with a raised eyebrow, causing her to blush, before striking the street with his staff, producing an immediate effect that was simple yet powerful.

Before Lily's incredulous eyes, dense clouds appeared out of nowhere. Thunder and lightning illuminated the sky and darkened the afternoon, unleashing a powerful storm that quickly sent the Muggles fleeing into their homes.

Lily watched with respect the skill and control Aegon possessed over his magic. The staff pulsed like a brilliant beacon, beating almost like a heart. Lily followed Aegon as he walked down the middle of the street, while her Lord moved the staff, removing absolutely everything from the path between them and their objective.

Within seconds, the entire place was completely deserted. Thunder and clouds plunged their surroundings into almost total darkness, while the staff itself protected the trio from the rain.

"We're almost there," Aegon informed them, causing Lily to release the breath she had been holding, sighing and looking ahead with concern, just as Ciri took her hand supportively and smiled.

"Everything will be all right, Lily. Don't worry. Soon you'll have Harry in your arms, and with a little luck, he'll have a little sister in a few months," the princess declared with an amused smirk, causing Lily to blush completely and shudder, feeling her thighs grow wet at the delicious image.

The mere thought of raising Aegon's heirs, of her womb becoming the source of life for the future Dragon Lords, of giving Harry a little sister…

By Merlin, the mere thought sent her into an almost perpetual state of ecstasy. Perhaps her Lord wouldn't limit himself to impregnating her only once. Perhaps Aegon wanted a large family… the more, the better.

Lily knew perfectly well that Bella wanted at least five children, although, to be truthful, she had no idea how that was going to work.

However, Lily's mischievous thoughts about the future were interrupted by Aegon's voice, clinical and self-assured, as he stopped before a particular house, on a street with a facade that had haunted Lily for weeks, ever since her little mischief with the megascope.

"This is it," he declared confidently, looking toward the seemingly innocent house. But if Lily had learned anything, it was that when magic was involved, things were never what they appeared to be.

And that was precisely what was happening here.

"There are powerful wards around this place. Blood magic… powerful but incomplete. A half-finished ritual. Interesting," Aegon declared as he stepped forward, the staff in his hand glowing with monstrous magical power. In response, the wards protecting Number 4 Privet Drive illuminated for an instant.

The sensation was immediate, almost… familiar to Lily. Merely seeing them caused something within her to tremble, as though her very presence made the enchantments in question… uneasy, for lack of a better word.

Their physical manifestation was even stranger. A kind of cocoon formed from crimson threads of pure magic became visible for an instant, courtesy of both Lily's presence and the gentle probing Aegon's staff was performing with precision. The redhead's Lord was frowning, evidently evaluating the situation.

Lily didn't interrupt him. Instead, she waited obediently at his side until he finished, even though every fiber of her being wanted to throw herself toward the house and save her little boy. She had learned her lesson the hard way a couple of weeks earlier with the megascope.

Night had already fallen. The sound of the rain was all the redheaded witch could hear as she focused completely upon the windows of that wretched place, as though hoping to glimpse, if only for an instant, the presence of her beloved son.

And then Aegon lowered his staff, a firm gesture that immediately caught Lily's attention. She looked at him with desperation in her eyes.

"Well, my love?" the redhead asked, desperation evident upon her face, growing anxious when Aegon grimaced with fury before shaking his head.

"Harry is in there… he's… it isn't pretty, Lily. He's beneath the stairs, in a cupboard. He needs urgent medical attention."

Those words caused the redhead's eyes to widen, utterly shocked by what Aegon had just said, as though a part of her refused to believe him. But then… that feeling vanished instantly, giving way to an incredible, overwhelming hatred, so intense that Lily was certain she could have cast the Cruciatus Curse upon whoever had dared to harm her little cub at that very moment.

"I'll break the wards, but it won't be pretty, and it won't be discreet. We'll have company before long, so you'll need to settle this matter quickly. Understood?" her Lord ordered, and Lily nodded, her face filled with determination and an absolute desire to unleash her fury upon those responsible for hurting her little boy.

"Understood, my Lord," the redhead declared, causing Aegon to nod solemnly and concentrate once again upon the wards. Lily's Lord didn't hesitate. He raised the powerful magical artifact, which glowed with such a monstrous cyan flash that the redhead had to close her eyes to avoid being blinded.

And then the dragon roared. Aegon pointed his staff toward Number 4 Privet Drive, unleashing a monstrous discharge of magical power that manifested as a powerful beam of cyan magical light, erupting from the Dragon Lord's staff and racing toward the house's wards.

And the moment the staff's magic made contact with the wards…

BOOOOOOOM!!

The impact was titanic, so powerful that Lily felt her bones tremble from the monstrous force. She had to make a tremendous effort not to collapse to the ground beneath the power being unleashed at that moment.

The wards manifested instantly upon contact. They were strong and intense, and although Lily wasn't an expert in creating magical defenses, she knew perfectly well that they weren't exactly easy to break.

And yet, the redheaded witch could only watch in wonder as the wards slowly began losing their intensity. The once-brilliant crimson radiance, which had glowed without interruption, began flickering, while enormous cracks started appearing across the magical bubble surrounding Privet Drive.

And all of it… appeared to be thanks to the staff in Aegon's hands.

"What… what's happening? You aren't disabling the wards… you're…" Lily began, only to be interrupted by Aegon.

"It's draining them. That's one of the properties of the Staff of Magnus. It closes the connections to Aetherium while forcing the atoms to discharge all the mana they've accumulated without compromising their fundamental integrity," Aegon explained technically, causing Lily to regard him with surprise.

"That sounds… extraordinarily dangerous and powerful," Lily confessed softly, causing Ciri to snort as she approached Lily and took the redhead's hand.

"Come on, Lily. We'll let our man deal with anyone who comes snooping around. It's time to save little Harry," Ciri declared, just as the wards were completely drained, collapsing inward and shattering like broken glass, which simply disintegrated the moment it touched the ground.

And the moment the barrier fell, Lily didn't hesitate. Her eyes were filled with determination as she and Ciri began walking toward the house.

Lily couldn't think about anything else. Her mind was fixed upon that dark brown door, with its immaculate number 4, the final obstacle standing between her and her little boy.

Apparently, the thunderous explosion Aegon had caused was enough to awaken the house's inhabitants, because before opening the door, she could hear the heavy footsteps of two enormous creatures descending the stairs with difficulty.

"What the fuck was that, Petunia? That… that…" spoke a deep yet shrill and nasal voice.

Lily inhaled sharply, recognizing that damned voice. She had last heard it after the deaths of James and her Harry, when the bitch she called her sister had visited her in Godric's Hollow, only to mock her because her "perfect life" had been destroyed.

Lily had responded by sending that bitch Petunia and her disgusting husband to St. Mungo's with third-degree burns, and she hadn't heard anything from them since.

But hearing her now…

"It must be that damned freak's fault. We thought we'd gotten rid of that… thing when that whore of a sister of mine died," Petunia spat as usual, her voice overflowing with burning envy.

Lily inhaled furiously, but Vernon's response was what caused every last shred of control to disappear from her mind, leaving nothing but a lioness willing to do absolutely anything to defend her cub.

"I'll fetch the old television cable. One good beating, and we'll make sure to beat all that freakishness out of him," he declared with obvious cruelty.

And at those words, at the declaration that this… beast intended to hurt her precious, beautiful little boy, every trace of mercy vanished from Lily's mind. She simply raised her wand and allowed her magic to flow.

The tip of her wand glowed with a white flash, releasing a powerful Depulso, so powerful that the door didn't merely fly open. Part of the wall itself was destroyed, sending the door hurtling down the hallway before it crashed onto the kitchen floor, causing that bitch Petunia and her husband to squeal like the disgusting pigs they were.

The rain had grown more intense, while stormy lightning illuminated the dark night. Lily vaguely heard the distinctive cracks of Apparition beginning to echo along the street, but once again, she paid them no attention. She knew perfectly well that they were no match for her man.

Aegon would take care of everything, as he always did, the redhead thought, concentrating upon her hatred, her fury, and Petunia's pale face, which apparently had recognized her.

"You!" she whispered in terror, but Lily's attention, her furious eyes, remained fixed solely upon Vernon. Without the slightest hesitation, the redhead was already moving her wand, her mind racing through every painful, humiliating, and dangerous spell she had learned in her youth.

And in a moment of inspiration, she used the very spell with which her late husband James had humiliated the damned traitorous rat he had once called a friend, Severus Snape.

And then the redhead's eyes filled with cruelty. Her hand moved almost of its own accord, elegant gestures shaping the reality around her, and in the blink of an eye, Vernon Dursley, that putrid creature who had dared even to suggest that her beloved cub would be beaten with a cable, found himself hanging upside down, suspended by his ankle.

"AHHHHHHG! AHHHHHG!" the disgusting pig screamed, while that idiot Petunia began shrieking about ghosts and other nonsense, at least until Ciri paralyzed her on the spot, the lioness enjoying what Lily was doing without the slightest trace of guilt.

"Take your time. This piece of shit dared to threaten to beat a child. If it were up to me, I'd slit his throat on the spot," she spat furiously, while outside, the sounds of fighting, spells, desperate Aurors, and Aegon's amused laughter dominated the night. Flames and lightning flew behind her, but she paid them no attention, at least not for now.

Without hesitation or mercy, Lily began moving her wand, slamming Vernon's body against the floor, drawing pathetic groans of agony from the putrid creature before lifting him again and striking him once more.

The redhead watched with satisfaction before speaking with venom in her voice.

"Don't worry, you piece of shit. I'll only beat you until all that freakishness of yours disappears," she spat furiously, repeating the gesture again and again and again, without the slightest trace of mercy.

With every impact, Vernon's groans grew weaker. His arms and legs were bent at unnatural angles, and blood poured from his nose and mouth. He was terrified and dying, but alive.

Lily made certain of that, that this piece of shit would have to endure an existence of agony, of constant pain, the same pain they had apparently inflicted upon her beloved son.

With an elegant movement, a powerful Depulso erupted from her wand, hurling Vernon into the kitchen, where he crashed onto the dining table, unconscious.

Without concerning herself with the well-being of such a pathetic creature, Lily moved her wand, now pointing it directly at Petunia's face, who remained petrified.

"Where is my son, you damned bitch?" the redheaded witch hissed, the tip of her wand glowing with a crimson radiance as tiny sparks emerged from it, the Cruciatus Curse resting upon the tip of her tongue.

Today, she would save her little boy.

Whatever the cost.

Albus Dumbledore, Number 4 Privet Drive – England.

"This is a disaster, Albus. A damned disaster," declared the young and newly elected Minister Cornelius Fudge as they hurried toward the anomaly at full speed.

BOOOM!

An explosion of cyan magic illuminated the rainy night over Privet Drive, while Albus and Cornelius, accompanied by a regiment of Aurors, arrived at the street where Harry Potter was being sheltered.

Spells flew everywhere as the screams of Aurors and Hit Wizards grew increasingly persistent, accompanied by powerful masculine laughter.

"HAHAHAHA! Come on, boys! Are you supposed to be Aurors? Your training is pathetic!" declared a surprisingly young voice, while, to Albus's disbelief, its owner wielded an elegant magical staff with impeccable mastery, casting elemental spells that, although powerful, seemed more… painful than lethal.

Albus managed to hear the voice of Auror Dawlish, who commanded a group of terrified cadets while the mysterious wizard effortlessly removed three experienced Aurors from the fight.

He moved like water, fluidly and elegantly. The spells launched toward him were intercepted and redirected by his elegant staff, in something more closely resembling a dance than a battle. Albus watched him summon walls of ice and freeze the bodies of three cadets, while curious sparks struck another pair, removing them from combat.

And most remarkably, he appeared to be… completely calm, even enjoying what was happening.

"Come on! Red-Four Formation! Red-Four!" Dawlish shouted, causing one of the cadets to raise her face furiously and snap.

"Why the fuck don't you get out there and face him yourself, you coward? That man has wiped the floor with two dozen Aurors!" the female cadet shouted furiously, causing Dawlish to frown and prepare to answer, at least until Albus intervened.

"That's enough. I'll handle this," he declared, much to the obvious relief of everyone present, both the cadets and Dawlish.

"Professor Dumbledore," they all declared, relaxing their shoulders, just as an emerald flash, terrifyingly similar to the Killing Curse, illuminated the night.

"An Unforgivable Curse!" Dawlish shouted, gripping his wand with extreme caution, at least until Dumbledore intervened.

"No, it wasn't. Look carefully," the old man declared, observing with intense interest how the mysterious spell, so similar to the Killing Curse, had merely petrified an entire squad of Aurors who had attempted to surprise the mysterious and powerful wizard from behind.

Within seconds, silence descended upon the area. Fifty Aurors had responded to Privet Drive after detecting the magical anomaly and the destruction of the wards, and the vast majority of them were out of combat, although, much to the Headmaster's relief, they were all alive.

Which, to be truthful, filled him with hope.

A moment later, Albus set to work. The tip of his wand glowed with an elegant blue radiance, effortlessly levitating the bodies of all the fallen Aurors out of the combat zone.

And to the Headmaster's relief, the strange wizard made no attempt to stop him. Quite the opposite. He adopted a waiting stance. Heavy rain lashed the neighborhood, and yet he remained completely dry, that mysterious and powerful staff resting in his hand.

But what worried the old Headmaster was that the door of Number 4 Privet Drive stood open, and a flash of red light emanated from within, although he couldn't see what was happening inside.

Albus continued walking with his wand in hand until the strange wizard spoke.

"Close enough," he warned, causing Albus to stop and begin analyzing everything happening around him.

For a moment, Albus and the mysterious wizard regarded each other. Neither spoke, but it was obvious that they were studying one another carefully. And finally, the old Headmaster was able to glimpse the face concealed beneath that hood.

Albus couldn't hide the surprise upon his face. He was… young. Extremely young. Barely a child! A young man who ought to have been attending Hogwarts.

"You're quite skilled in battle magic, my boy," Albus declared calmly, causing the young man to regard him with curiosity. And Albus couldn't help gasping… instantly recognizing that face.

Aristocratic black hair, pale skin, and those… eyes…

No… it couldn't be. He was… he was looking at a Black.

"Who are you, young man? I recognize your features. You're a Black through and through," he declared firmly, tightening his grip upon his wand and adopting a defensive stance. Yet, to his surprise, the young man didn't appear concerned in the slightest, but rather… curious.

At those words, Albus heard Fudge gasp behind him, while the young man tilted his head to one side, regarding him with curiosity.

"You seem… familiar. You have eyes similar to those of a woman I know, old man," the young man declared, not with hostility, but with… curiosity, as though old Dumbledore were a puzzle he hadn't yet managed to solve.

Albus chuckled softly, his tone filled with amusement but also respect, before continuing.

"Oh, my boy, believe me, if I knew a wizard as skilled in magic as you, I wouldn't forget him easily. Do you have a name?" the old man asked, hoping to obtain information about his enemy.

The young man maintained his relaxed posture. There was no fear or any indication that he intended to launch an attack. By Merlin, there wasn't even the slightest trace of Dark Magic. His spells had been precise, intended to incapacitate, not kill.

And so Albus believed this situation could still be resolved without violence.

Alas, fate had other plans, for the stranger answered.

"Aegon Black, at your service. You remind me so much of her, you know? You have her eyes," he declared curiously, leaning upon his staff. But Albus knew that although he appeared calm and unconcerned, those eyes betrayed the fact that he was prepared to attack at any moment, should it become necessary.

"Oh? And whom do I resemble, young Black?" he asked curiously, genuinely uncertain what to expect. But Albus was certain that he hadn't expected the words that emerged from Aegon's mouth at that moment.

"Professor Arianna Dumbledore, of course."

And to Albus, those words struck like a punch to the liver. They disarmed him more efficiently than any enchantment ever could.

"What… what did you say?" Albus asked with a certain disbelief, taking a step forward and raising his wand.

"How do you know that name?" Albus demanded firmly, something within him roaring for an answer, desperate to understand how this young magical prodigy knew the name that haunted him every night.

And the answer…

"How? She's my professor, of course."

And at those words, Albus's resolve faltered for an instant. His wand became unsteady, while a part of him desperately, almost madly, wanted to know what the young man meant.

"My… my sister. My sister is…" he attempted to say, trying to convince himself, but before he could continue, a pair of silhouettes emerged from Number 4 Privet Drive. Two women, judging by the shapes of their bodies, and although they were too far away for him to make out their faces, the old man's eyes widened enormously upon seeing that one of them carried the small, sleeping body of the Potter heir in her arms.

"HARRY!" he shouted, beginning to hurry toward them, only to stop when an enormous wall of flames materialized before him, bringing him back to reality.

And back to Aegon, who now pointed his staff toward him, the gem glowing with such powerful magic that even Albus hesitated.

"Our conversation isn't over yet, Mr. Dumbledore," he declared with something approaching excitement, as though anticipating the coming battle.

The young and skilled wizard moved his staff once again with a mastery that could only have come from hundreds of hours of practice, causing the wall of flames to surround them both, leaving Albus and this… Aegon Black face-to-face, with nobody to interfere.

"I won't let you kidnap him! I won't fail James and Lily again!" the Headmaster snapped, the Elder Wand in his hand glowing with tremendous power, ready to fight, even eager for some reason.

Aegon merely smiled as they both unleashed their spells simultaneously, colliding in the center of Privet Drive.

Albus had no fucking idea what was happening, but he would get to the bottom of it.

Whatever the cost.