Antlia felt her heart catch in her throat as she stared at him, but she knew better than to make her emotions apparent and risk appearing weak. She had to stay strong. She had come all this way from France and she refused to accept rejection, even if it came from the leader of the movement himself. "You're wrong," she breathed, holding herself up a little straighter, pulling her shoulders back, trying to actually feel the confidence she was trying to display as the Felix Felicis began to wear off.
Tom chuckled as he leaned back into his chair, resting his chin on his hand. "Pretty kitty, you may be a marvelous creature, but all that magic is put to waste with your age and inexperience. And besides that dear, I don't have time to help you with your little revenge plans."
She could feel the tips of her ears growing red beneath her hair as the blood rushed towards her head. "I don't need your help with getting revenge-"
"And what's going to keep your loyalty once you have avenged your mother? Hmm?" Tom cut her off, lazily challenging her from his seat. "I need loyal followers, followers that are committed to the cause, not flighty, revenge-seeking teens."
She tossed a section of her hair over her shoulder. Breathe, Antlia. Keep calm, confident, and collected. Just . . . she took in a silent breath. Breathe. "If you wouldn't talk over me, you'd know I already took care of the filth that took my mother from me. I'm committed to this cause because I know what muggles are like, but I don't need to explain my drive to you. All you need to know is this is what I've dedicated my life to. And," she paused, shooting him a glare before sticking her nose up. "And, I was homeschooled, so I had years of private training with my mother, so you can take your comments and shove off. If you're going to be so dimwitted to deny my help, then that's your own damn fault," she huffed before turning to walk off. Part of her wondered if she had taken the right approach or if her gut had misguide her. Before she had much time to dwell on it however, she heard clapping from behind her.
"Bravo on your little show, kitten. But you better come back if you want to help me."
The moment she turned around, she saw the smirk that stretched from ear to ear, covering his face. "Now you want my help?" She asked coolly, not taking a single step towards him.
He just shook his head, that smug smirk not so much as flickering. "Now, don't be rude. Come back over here so we can talk."
Antlia stuck her nose up in the air before she marched over to him, stopping still a few feet away. Instead of directly acknowledging him again or saying another word, she leaned back to sit, a thick tree root immediately rose up from the ground, arching perfectly beneath her to support her. "Do you want my help or not?" She spat at him, trying to keep a brave face.
He leaned forward, studying her. "You'll have to forgive me, pretty kitty. I wanted to test your dedication to the cause. I can't have weak-spirited help, can I?"
"You could have just believed me. I went to a lot of trouble to find you," she scowled as her gaze locked on him.
Tom stared at the root that cradled her, appraising her magic silently. "Oh? How so?"
Her eyes narrowed, letting out a sharp breath of air through her nose. "I'm tired of you wasting my time. Do I get to be a part of your work or not?"
"Oh, do play nice kitten. I will accept your help, but I need to get better understand you if we are going to work together."
Antlia rolled her eyes, looking away from him, but she couldn't help but to relax. She had him exactly right where she wanted him, all she had to do was keep playing the upper hand. Keep him interested but make him curious. Leave him with questions, but just enough answers that he could trust in her and her abilities. "I'm here for the cause, not here to make friends."
His lips slipped into that same, satisfied smile as he watched her. "Of course. How about you meet me here, next Friday. Until then, I'll leave you with a small task."
She slightly shifted back to him. "Oh?"
His grin grew. "Get to know my followers in the school. You figured out Bellatrix, I'm sure you can figure out who the rest of them are. Earn their trust."
It took every ounce of self control Antlia had within herself to refrain from groaning. Of course he'd ask her to do the very thing she had already been doing. Maybe if she told him her family name he'd change his mind? She thought for a moment, just watching him as a million different scenarios ran through her mind. No. Its way too dangerous to tell him I'm Orion's daughter. He might tell Orion I'm at Hogwarts and I'm not sure I'm ready to deal with that just yet. Instead of arguing with the man, Antlia just took in a deep breath and nodded silently.
Tom stood up, holding a hand out to the teen that still sat on the tree root before him, his chair immediately disappearing from behind him. "Pretty kitty," he smiled as she gave him one of her hands before planting a gentle kiss atop it. "I'll be seeing you soon."
Antlia stood up, the root melding back into the ground, dirt moving to perfectly cover it back up. She watched silently as he walked away before disappearing into the trees. Well, She thought to herself. Here goes nothing I guess.