My System chimed softly in my mind.
Sauron Template Progress: +3%New Talent Acquired: Sauron's Intelligence
It was like a veil lifted.
Thoughts sharpened. Strategies formed instantly. Emotions became tools.I could feel the power of persuasion and long-term scheming weaving itself through my very being — just as the Dark Lord once manipulated Elves and kings alike.
Strategist. Craftsman. Manipulator.A mind that could build empires… or dissolve civilizations.
I inhaled.
This — this was what true power felt like.
Diagon Alley bustled with magic and excitement as I emerged from the green flames of the Floo Network. My wand was already chosen, my gold already overflowing thanks to the Black vaults. I was here for something else.
People whispered my newly created name — Auron Soran Black, heir to the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black.
Perfect.
I stepped into Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions… and my eyes immediately locked onto two boys standing on the fitting platform.
Harry Potter.
Messy black hair. Green eyes. The lightning scar visible beneath his fringe.
Draco Malfoy.
Blonde hair slicked back. Pure-blood arrogance practically radiating off him.
A fated rivalry just beginning to simmer.
A rivalry that would only benefit Dumbledore.
My lips curled slightly.Not today.
I slipped between them with calculated ease.
"First-years as well?" I said, voice smooth and friendly. "I'm Auron Soran. Pleased to meet fellow Hogwarts students."
They both paused — the tension snapping like a broken spell.
Draco looked at me with curiosity, recognizing my ring.
"Black family?" he asked.
"Yes," I answered lightly. "Recently acknowledged. It's been… enlightening."
Harry blinked. "Black? Like—"
"Yes," I smiled, "that Black family."
As we chatted, I worked silently.
A whisper of mind magic curled through Draco's thoughts — polishing away some of his snobbery, reinforcing composure and eloquence. A future ally must be respectable, not brash.
Then… Harry.
A gentle, invisible prod toward the fragment of Voldemort inside him. For years, Dumbledore had suppressed it — denying Harry the ambition that could have made him great.
I freed it.
Subtle hunger for knowledge. Curiosity about power. A flicker of cunning.His eyes sharpened — just slightly.
Perfect.Both boys now stepping toward the path I opened.
By the time our robes were boxed and paid for, laughter — genuine or otherwise — filled the shop.
"We should sit together on the Hogwarts Express," I suggested, casual and confident.
Harry nodded. Draco agreed with a small smile.
Three future first-years.Three serpents hiding in plain sight.
And none of them suspected that a new Dark Lord had just bound their destinies together.