Like that, June arrived.
The final exams came and went, and Hogwarts gradually settled into the familiar excitement that always accompanied the end of the school year. Students discussed grades, packed their trunks, and counted down the days until summer began.
Victor, however, had more pressing concerns.
As expected, Peter Pettigrew escaped.
The news reached Hogwarts only a few days after his transfer to Azkaban had begun. Somewhere between Ministry custody and the prison, he had managed to vanish.
He wasn't even surprised.
At this point, he genuinely couldn't decide whether Pettigrew was the luckiest coward in Britain or whether the Ministry was simply incapable of holding anyone determined to escape.
Possibly both.
The important part was what happened next.
Pettigrew would eventually find his way back to Voldemort.
Which meant the countdown had truly begun.
Next year Hogwarts would host the Triwizard Tournament. Students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang would arrive, the castle would be filled with visitors, and everyone would be focused on the competition.
Meanwhile, Voldemort would be making his own preparations.
By the end of the year, he would return.
Victor leaned back in his seat and stared out across the grounds.
Horcruxes.
Without destroying them, defeating Voldemort was meaningless. No matter how many times his body was destroyed, he would always find a way back.
Fortunately, some progress had already been made.
The diary was gone.
The locket and Diadem had been destroyed.
That left four remaining problems.
Helga Hufflepuff's Cup.
Marvolo Gaunt's Ring.
Harry Potter.
And Nagini, who had yet to become a Horcrux.
The cup was hidden inside Gringotts. The ring carried a deadly curse. Harry's situation was complicated enough to give anyone a headache, while Nagini couldn't be dealt with until Voldemort actually used her as a vessel.
None of those targets would be easy.
Still, every fragment removed brought Voldemort closer to becoming mortal.
Once the last piece was gone, he would lose the one advantage that had allowed him to cheat death for so long.
Victor looked toward the summer sky.
Time was running short.
***
Summer arrived, and with Hogwarts closed for the holidays, Victor found himself walking through Diagon Alley beneath the bright afternoon sun.
The streets were crowded with families purchasing books, robes, potion ingredients, and every other supply students would need before September. Victor paid little attention to the activity around him.
He was there for a reason.
A very specific one.
His gaze drifted toward the translucent screen visible only to him.
[Ability Assimilation (3 Uses Remaining)]
Even now, Victor occasionally questioned how an ability this absurd could exist.
Its purpose was simple.
Merge a magical artifact into his body.
Acquire its abilities permanently.
He had already decided how all three uses would be spent.
One was reserved for a Time-Turner. Whether he used it often or not didn't matter. An artifact capable of manipulating time itself was too valuable to ignore.
The second belonged to a wand.
Not his current one.
The Elder Wand.
A wand permanently integrated into his body would eliminate too many weaknesses to count. Disarming would become impossible, and losing it during a fight would no longer be a concern.
The final use was reserved for something most people would consider ridiculous.
A broom.
The logic was straightforward.
Flying solved problems.
Apparition had restrictions. Many locations blocked it entirely, and heavily warded areas often interfered with transportation magic. A permanently integrated method of flight would remain useful regardless of those limitations.
That was why he had come to Diagon Alley.
He was searching for the best broom available.
As he continued through the crowded street, Victor caught his reflection in a shop window. Over the past year, he'd grown noticeably taller, to the point that strangers occasionally mistook him for a much older student.
While examining the latest Nimbus model on display, his attention shifted to something else in the reflection.
A hooded figure.
Watching him.
Victor didn't react.
This was the third time he had spotted the same person since entering Diagon Alley. The first two times could have been coincidence.
A third time wasn't.
Someone was following him.
'Hmm. Following me?'
Without looking in the figure's direction, Victor continued walking as though he had noticed nothing. A few minutes later, he changed course and headed toward Knockturn Alley.
The atmosphere changed almost immediately.
The crowds thinned.
The shops became darker.
The people wandering the streets looked considerably less trustworthy than those in Diagon Alley.
Perfect.
Victor continued deeper into the alley before turning a corner.
Then he vanished.
The hooded man froze.
For a brief moment, confusion crossed his face as he stepped forward and looked around the empty alleyway.
The boy had disappeared.
He had only looked away for a second.
"Looking for someone?"
The voice came from above.
The man instinctively looked up.
That was a mistake.
Victor dropped from the rooftop and drove a punch directly into his face.
The impact snapped the man's head backward and sent him crashing onto the ground.
He didn't even get the chance to draw his wand.
By the time his body hit the stone pavement, he was already unconscious.
*****
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