Chapter 24
McGonagall stared angrily down at the glaring demon standing before her, but she couldn’t hold onto her rage as she stared down at the child. Because Filius was right, he was just a child and quite a bit of the anger she currently felt towards him was misplaced and she had no right to judge him before getting the full story. Much of the fury that she felt wasn't actually aimed at Prince Seren, but towards Dumbledore, the Dursley’s, and herself. Poor Harry Potter was missing and was quite possibly dead, something that terrified her. She didn't want to mourn the loss of the tiny baby she'd last seen all those years ago, a child she'd clearly failed from the very start. Little Harry Potter had been the last link she had of two of her favorite students: the Transfiguration prodigy that had managed to wiggle his way into her heart known as James Potter and the smartest witch of her generation Lily Potter née Evans, both filled with so much potential. The two children she’d watched and taught as they slowly grew into young adults that were brimming with endless possibilities for their future despite the terrifying war and fear that ran rampant in their world. She had watched as James grew into a kinder man, watched as Lily made connections that would help her in the future despite the rampant discrimination against muggle-borns, watched as the two fell in love and finally began their lives together.
Only for the young couple's lives to be snuffed out when they had only been 21 and had just begun to truly live. They had gotten married, had begun to start a family, had had hopes and dreams for the future despite being forced into hiding when Voldemort had taken an interest in their son before he had even been born into the world. Lily and James Potter had been forced to leave behind their beloved son all alone in the world just so that he could have a fighting chance at life, even if it wouldn't include them. Their only child that they had sacrificed their lives for in exchange for his with the belief that those close to them would protect him in their place. And yet they had all failed James, Lily, and Harry the very day they died. She had known from the very start that the Dursley’s weren’t a good family, she’d watched them for only a day and had seen red flag after red flag. She had even argued with Dumbledore about his placement, but that didn’t alleviate her from any of the blame. She may have argued against it, but it had only taken Dumbledore barely a minute before he had convinced her to drop her concerns. Less than a minute! Young Harry hadn’t even been brought inside the Dursley residence, he had been abandoned by the only remaining family he had left without any care for the fact that he was only a defenseless baby that could only rely on those around him to protect him. Ten years had passed since that night and Harry was no where to be found. She doubted they would ever find him.
Then they had discovered an unknown and obviously dangerous species. Even more alarming was that they were apparently members of the Most Ancient royal house of the Ars Goetia that hadn’t been seen for centuries. She hadn’t liked it at all and had been afraid of what a demon child’s presence could mean for Hogwarts. Her anger towards Prince Seren’s presence hadn’t actually began until the school year had started and it had escalated rather quickly before she had finally lashed out when she saw him leading his fellow students to skip class. In her mind, Prince Seren Goetia had taken the place of young Harry Potter. While Harry’s disappearance had left the wizarding world wondering where he was, any worry was mostly replaced by the awe of Prince Seren attending Hogwarts. Every time she walked through the halls, Prince Seren was all she heard the students talk about. Whenever she met the other Professors, she heard praises for Prince Seren over and over again without fail. She felt as if everyone had forgotten Harry Potter, but as she heard more and more about Prince Seren… she just felt so much anger. But it wasn’t Prince Seren’s fault. Prince Seren was just a child, excited to make new friends and so eager to learn.
McGonagall heaved a deep sigh as she attempted to correct her mistakes, “Prince Seren. I apologize for my anger and disrespect towards you. I had been angry about something else and I’ve been unfairly taking out on you. I’m sorry.”
She watched as all the children including Prince Seren’s eyes widen at her words with mixes of suspicion and wariness directed towards her. She held back a wince at their gazes, they had every right to be wary of her words. She hadn’t been hiding her disdain of Prince Seren at all, showing blatant biases every time they saw one another in class.
Prince Seren gave her a small frown, switching his speech to a more formal tone, “I see. I cannot say that I forgive you as it has been detrimental to the quality of my education in this establishment and I will need to inform my parents of these incidents. I had not told my parents of your behavior as I had wished to deal with it myself, but I will now tell them about all our interactions as well as your apology. Expect my parents presence the moment they receive my messages half-an-hour after dinner tonight. Please let the other professors and the Headmaster know to attend the meeting as I’m sure my parents will be eager to make sure these problems do not occur again.”
McGonagall gave a stiff nod, “I understand.”
And she did understand. Prince Seren may be a student at Hogwarts, but he was also a member of the royal family and she had been warned from the very beginning to treat him as such. She had ignored those cautionary words in her misplaced anger and now she had to pay the price.