"Oh, Miss Black, are you Miss Black?"
Lys turned around. Ever since she'd complained to the Dark Lord about those idiotic nobles bullying her simply because her surname was Black, she hadn't heard this form of address.
Lys thought for a moment but couldn't recall any information about this person.
The man wasn't embarrassed either. "I'm with the Ministry of Magic's Immigration Department. Our department is handling all the documentation for personnel traveling abroad in connection with the German cooperation."
Lys gave an "Oh," unsure what he wanted with her.
The wizard looked up at Lys and explained: "We've been sending owls these past few days hoping you could come to the Ministry to help us fill out some forms, but the owls keep returning with the letters undelivered. When might you have time?"
Lys pulled out her pocket watch and glanced at it. "Tomorrow, then. You're nearly off work now anyway, aren't you?"
The wizard's smile became more genuine. "Yes, exactly so. I'll have a colleague waiting for you in the Immigration office tomorrow." He stepped back respectfully and departed.
Taking one last look at that ice cream, Lys returned to the reading room. If she looked any longer, she'd be unable to resist going in for a taste.
Lys slumped in her little corner of the reading room—though calling it a reading room was generous now, since no one came to read books anymore. When Bellatrix had come to take Senna away last time, she'd made such a conspicuous scene without any attempt at discretion.
So now not only did the Death Eaters know that Stalys Black had grievances with Bellatrix, but even the neighbors around Diagon Alley knew this family had feuds with Death Eaters—the lady of the house hadn't shown her face in ages.
Lys collapsed in her familiar corner, clutching Crunch while studying some of her previous materials and alchemy notes.
Flipping through them, she found a book she'd retrieved from Snape—she'd read halfway through it before, but since she temporarily couldn't experiment with the dark magic theories within, Lys had buried it at the bottom of her trunk.
After some thought, Lys continued reading, shaking her head as she went. If Snape could instantly age twenty or thirty years, Lys felt the wizarding world's elite would certainly include Snape, whether in magic or potions.
His mind was simply too brilliant. Look at this—just look at this spell's origins. Tsk tsk tsk... Lys marveled while taking notes with her quill.
These notes weren't just for Lys anymore—occasionally she'd have Lulu, who was beginning to handle tasks for her, study them too. Though that pine wand still wasn't quite suitable, the little witch's spellcasting style was becoming increasingly similar to Lys's.
After finishing the book, she brewed herself a pot of black tea. Lys had lived this completely manual lifestyle for several months now and was thoroughly accustomed to it.
Sipping her tea, Lys opened the newspapers she'd collected, cutting out clippings about Grindelwald piece by piece.
Though her understanding from various sources had somewhat diminished Grindelwald's image in Lys's mind, he'd also become more concrete, more like a living person.
Lys looked at the photograph of Grindelwald in custody. Though he was magically pinned to the ground in the photo, anyone could see he didn't believe he'd lost.
His eyes even held a hint of amusement—Lys recognized that as confidence born of true power.
Just as Lys was holding up that clipping with mixed feelings, Noah entered, carrying a tiny ice cream. Though Lys could devour it in one bite, she still set the clipping aside and savored the small treat for ages.
Noah glanced at the newspapers spread across the table and sighed inwardly. Why was Little Star so fascinated with this old man?
He unobtrusively gathered all those papers into a stack and stored them in Lys's own book chest. Only after Little Star finished eating and concealed the evidence of her sneaking did he take the supplementary materials for Senna and head home with Lys.
The next day, Noah accompanied Lys on the Knight Bus to the Ministry of Magic. Lys crouched outside the Ministry entrance, dry-heaving for ages. Despite Lys's large frame now, she was actually extremely weak—being able to carry Crunch around after riding that wildly bouncing bus was already her limit.
Noah took out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from her forehead, feeling somewhat heartbroken. Lys noticed and, seeing no one around, comforted Noah: "Dad, it's alright. As long as I take my potions on schedule, things will improve considerably in another six months."
Noah knew this, of course, but seeing his previously elegant and healthy daughter become so bloated and frail—last night she'd stood before the mirror, holding up old suits she could no longer fit into—his heart ached.
He wanted to support Lys, but his own legs couldn't bear the weight. He could only accompany Lys as they slowly entered the Ministry.
Walking into the Ministry's underground building, Lys immediately felt some coolness—her forehead stopped constantly sweating. She adjusted Crunch's position on her shoulder and approached the registration desk.
The staff member shrank into their chair, hiding their pet behind them to avoid Crunch's gaze. Lys sheepishly pressed her left hand's brace over Crunch's head and gave the registration clerk an apologetic smile.
Entering the lift with Noah, Lys patted Crunch with her right hand. "On the way home, we'll stop at the pet shop and buy you some little mice."
Crunch still couldn't understand human speech but roughly grasped the meaning, obediently turning his reluctant head back to rest atop Lys's head.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
The story isn't over...
🤔 Want to know what happens next to the characters?
🤫 Eager to explore the untold secrets of this world?
✍️ Ready to read more of my wildest stories?
✨patreon.com/DarkGolds