Disclaimer: If you recognize it….I do not own it
Information: Now this is going to be set after the seventh book, but with a few small changes…please don't kill me. No in order to make this little story work we must remove the whole killing Dumbledore Hears violent cries for my head I know it was a important factor to the seventh book but it is needed for this story to work. Other things made be changed as the story progresses, please just go with it or criticize all you want but I am giving you a warning.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unicorns, pure, magical and ageless. These creatures are the essence of innocence, flowing manes, glowing horns and peaceful attitudes. Such creatures were slain, there horns used for many magical potions and their blood used to prolong life. In time of need a creature was created, one that could take on the form of both unicorn and human, a Guardian of the Unicorn. These creatures were not ageless like the unicorns, in the wild there lives are often cut short, many not making it past the age of 30, despite being able to live to the age of 100. Their lives are hard, throwing themselves head on into battles to protect the herd, a valiant display of self sacrifice.
Guardians cannot be bred, they are created in the womb of a unsuspecting unicorn mare. Upon birth the mare will know if the foal is destined to be a guardian, it is the mare who can instantly tell, mothers intuition it can be called. Until the guardian reaches the age of 8 it will be unable to transform into a human, it stays with the herd learning all that is needed in order to protect it. Once it is able to transform it will be sent away, spending a year out in the wild to fend for itself, if it returns it will be given the title of Guardian and take up its place in the herd.
Commonly the foal is born male, they are considered to be more muscular and more fit to be protector. Normally a male unicorn will be outcasted at the age of three, the lead stallion feeling the younger stallion may be a threat. The only reason the stallions tolerate the guardians are because they are sterile, unable to bred due to the crossing of species thus are no threat to the stallion. Despite the ability to take both human and unicorn appearances it is a rare occasion that a guardian takes on their human appearance.
With saying that…on with the story.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A weathered mare sat on a grassy hill, eyes closed as she absorbed the warmth of the sun that shone down upon her white fur. A ear was flicked back as she heard the light footsteps of another approaching, nostrils taking a breath to scent the air, telling her it was a youngster approaching.
"What is it that you want dear." the mare asked, eyes still closed.
"The others say that you know the story of Endil better then anyone else, could you please tell it to me?"
"It is a long story, one that could take many hours"
"I have time" the youngster said, as he lowered his light frame down onto the soft grass of the hill. He watched the older mare sigh, her wrinkled nose quivered as she did. His ears pricked up as the mare began to tell the story of Endil, he soaked up everything the mare said, for Endil's story was legendary. The mare began her story, her voice soft as if it drained her to talk to loud.
Not for 17 years had such a gathering occurred, the creatures were becoming skittish as the threat of darkness began taking its toll on the peaceful creatures. It was a rare occasion to behold such a sight, 100 unicorns stood in a small clearing in the forest. A sea of shimmering white and glowing horns, nickers and whinnies filled the night sky, the faint scent of fear in the air. It was dangerous to have such a large amount of them in such a small area, they were fish in a barrel ready to be picked off by the right predator. But desperate times call for such measures, the growing darkness was need for discussion, need for the wisdom that these creatures held.
A hush fell over the pure creatures, heads turning to watch as a ancient unicorn walked into the middle of the group, followed by two others. There horns were curved from old age, the beards that grew from their chins dragged along the ground, their very auras held such age. The first of the three stepped forward, head turned to look at all those around him, horn glowing a pale gold as he spoke.
"For many years our kind kept to ourselves, offering our wisdom when needed but times call for change."
Another of the ancient creatures stepped forward, nodding once to the other, horning glowing the same gold as he spoke.
"The dark lord is rising, we cannot turn a blind nose to the stench of black magic that has settled over the land." 'What can we do' came a question from the sea of white. "On previous occasions we would do nothing but help is needed. I call for Endil to come forth!"
All around the unicorns shifted, nickering quietly. From the group stepped a young mare, head lowered in a sign on respect to the Elders, coming to a stop a few feet away from them.
"Endil, this generations Guardian of the Unicorns. It has been many decades since we have had a female guardian, from birth we knew you were destined for great things. We plan to send Endil into the school across the lake, she will be set up to protect the one person that is a threat to the Dark Lord."
There were whispers of the name 'Harry Potter', the whole of the population knew about the boy-who-lived, they knew of the dark lords obsession with the young boy. Again the Elder unicorn called for hush, turning his deep brown eyes to the young one that stood before him.
"Do you, Endil, accept this task, for the good of the herd?"
"I do" Endil agreed, without hesitation. There was a cry from the herd, the young mare's heart lurched as she recognized the pained whinny that belonged to her mother. Endil closed her eyes, hiding the rare blue eyes from the Elders.
The last of the Elders stepped forward, reaching out a muzzle, roughened by age, and touched it against the soft one of the female. Blue met brown as the mare opened her eyes, she could feel his emotions flood her, appreciation, determination, and above all a deep sense of pride.
"You are truly one of a kind, young one, it is an honor to be near you."
"The feeling is mutual my lord."
The contact was broken as the last of the Elders stepped back, stepping in line to that of the other two. All three stood at the same height, heads raised and horns glowing. Endil stepped backwards, head lowered once more, watching the Elders. The large herd was silent as they waited for the next words of the Elders, white coats quivering with anticipation.
"May the gods protect you dear Endil, we pray for your safe return to us." The middle Elder spoke, suddenly all three of the Elders rose up onto their hind legs. It was a sight to behold, three ancient creatures, hooves tucked into their bodies and their manes whipping in the sudden wind that rose as they did.
"HAIL ENDIL"
The rest of the unicorns rose in turn, each giving the cry, showing their respects to the one that was to be sent away. Endil was over flowing with emotion, never had one guardian been honored in such a way, like her this moment was one of a kind. Hooves touched back to the earth, heads thrown in farewells as the large herd departed, each one leaving to return to their homelands. Finally there were 5 unicorns standing in the clearing, the three Elders, Endil and her mother.
"Farewell dear Endil, we look forward to your return." The Elders left the subject of her not returning unattended, then, with flicks of the white heads, they were gone, cantering into the trees and disappearing with a flash of white.
"Mother" Endil said quietly, turning her neck to see her mother, tears welling at the sight of her pained stance. Her mother stepped toward her daughter, neck curling around that of her daughters in a horse like embrace. The two stood there for what seemed like eternity, locked in a embrace only mother and daughter could hold. When they broke apart neither had dry eyes, the two mares rubbed cheeks together, in a final farewell.
"Stay safe daughter."
"As you mother."
"You had best get going, it is three days travel from here and you need to be there when the students arrive."
Endil was to chocked with emotion to answer her mother, Endil gave one last rub of the cheek before turning. Her mothers whinny filled the forest as she moved, long powerful legs carrying her heavy body faster then a normal horse. Endil weaved through the trees at such a speed she looked like a flash of light, the speed could only be kept up for a short amount of time, normally used in extreme circumstances due to the time needed to recover afterwards. Endil did not care, she ignored the burning of her lungs and the pain in her legs, she just needed to run trying to escape her emotions.
Endil pulled up on the far side of the lake, her white sides heaving as she struggled to control her breathing. She took the time to take in the beauty of the lake at night, the navy blue of the water, the glowing white of the moon as it reflected off the waters surface. Endil felt a sense of dread fill her, if she failed and the Dark Lord did take over what would become of such amazing scenes, what would become of the forests and the grassy fields? What of the unicorns? Would they be slain in order to provide power to the weakened lord, perhaps taken and put into work forced to pull carts like common horses.
In the distance Endil could see the tops of Hogwarts poking up, reminding her even more of what she was to do. She did not know if she would be able to handle such a task, there were many smaller problems standing in her way! She would be living indoors for most of her time, despite how large the castle was she still knew she would feel claustrophobic with the constricting walls all around. There was also the fact of the many human spawn running around, this would be her first lengthy encounter with the human kind and it was to be one were she would be over run. On top of that she would have to worry about the protection of a hazard attracting male teenager and a unstoppable dark lord! It was too much for one so young, why had the Elders not gone instead? Surely they were more experienced with such dealings?
Endil gave a snort, she still had two days worth of travel and thinking such thoughts would surely give her cold hooves…feet, she would have to start thinking more like a human and less like a unicorn. Endil looked down at her hooves, trying to picture small toes poking from them, the idea seemed ludicrous. There had been many occasions when she had transformed into a human, having had to get use to walking on to legs and picking up things using her hands, it was part of her training! But having to stay a human for as long as the threat of the Dark Lord still lingered, it could be weeks, years even.
Endil finally pulled herself away from the lake, picking her way through the rocks and small pebbles until she was onto the soft grass. Choosing a large tree to take cover under Endil proceeded to sleep, it was not a deep one, her ears constantly listening to the sounds around her, legs ready to spring into action should something feel out of place. Thankfully the night was uneventful and by morning Endil was ready to get back on the road, traveling a slow paced gallop in order to travel more distance in a shorter time.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It was raining heavily as Endil approached the doors to Hogwarts, pausing to look up at the over bearing castle, looking even more horrifying in the dark night sky. With a flock of her horn the doors opened, allowing her to enter the castle with little obstacles. Endil relied on her sensitive ears to pin point the location of the dinning hall, traveling up the stairs quickly, ignoring the shouts from the paintings about animals lose in the castle. The sounds grew louder until it came to a point that her ears rung, finding herself standing behind a rather large set of doors, the scents of bread and fruits, meat and other things she did not know filled her nose.
With a deep breath Endil flicked her head, her horn glowing silver as she used light magic to open the doors. There was a gasp from the many students as they turned to look at the creature in the doorway, Dumbledore stood from his spot at the front of the hall, a large smile on his face, the all knowing wizard seemed to have been 'expecting' her. The silence in the hall was awkward for her, having thousands of eyes fixed upon you and you only was a unpleasant feeling.
Dumbledore rose a hand, flicking the fingers in permission for her to enter, grinning like a mad fool. Endil stepped forward timidly, all aware of the sound of her hooves clattering on the stone floor, magnified by the silence of the students. Every eye watched her as she walked closer to Dumbledore, catching every movement, every flicker and ever breath the Guardian made. She was three quarters down the walkway when she stopped, left front leg outstretched, bringing her body down to the ground in a bow.
"Endil it is a pleasure to finally meet you, I do believe you are a night before schedule and still in your born form."
Endil took this as a un asked cue for her to change into her human form, she rose her body slightly out of the bow, giving herself a comfortable changing position. Unlike a animagus, who can take a few moments of seen change to become there set animal, Endil was able to change in a flash, very useful should a sudden change was needed in a deadly situation. The students blinked and then gasped, a unicorn had been bowing there one moment and the next their was a 17 year old girl dressed completely in white. Endil now stood at 5'6", her white hair flowed down to the middle of her back, light blue eyes and a stone on her head were her horn would be. She wore white pants that flared at the bottoms, a shirt, again white, that to flared at the ends. Endil rose from her bow, feeling out of place in this form.
"I traveled hard to avoid the rain, the speed I travel at would be dangerous to attempt on unstable ground." Her voice was easy on the ears, one that could calm the wildest beast if heard.
"Very wise young one, now I was given a message to expect you and yet the reason for this visit was left out. Fill us in on what brings one of your kind into my school?"
"Days ago a meeting was held, 100 unicorns attend to discus what was to happen about the rising of the Dark Lord. We do not want to see out lands fall under his evil hand so a decision was made" Endil paused, taking a deep breath. "The herd decided to lend the Guardian of the Unicorns to aid you in your fight, as this generations Guardian I was appointed the job to watch and protect Harry Potter, the boy-who-lived, till this war is over or till death releases me."
There were gasps heard from around the hall, eyes flicking over to were Harry Potter sat, seeing the shocked look on his face told them he had not expected any of this. Dumbledore held up his hand to stop the chatter that had rose up in the hall, once all was quiet he spoke again.
"Let us hope it does not end with extremes, it would be a shame for the unicorns to loose their first female Guardian after many decades of males. Although I do not approve of one so young being given as a protector, it is not my place to argue with that of the Elders." Dumbledore gave a soft sigh, cleared his through and continued on. "You will take up residence in with Gryffindor and you will have the same privileges as Teachers when it comes to rules but I warn you do not abuse this freedom." With a clap of his hands Dumbledore signaled the closure of his speech. "Eat and rest, you will be shown to where you will live once dinner if over."
Endil gave a nod and a low bow once again, slowly she turned and walked toward the Gryffindor table, taking a seat across from a gob smacked Harry Potter. This was the last thing anyone in the school, aside from Dumbledore, had expected many were in awe of what happened and others, namely Hermione and Hagrid, could not wait to dissect this creature with questions, which would have to wait for another day. The sight of all the fruits and vegetables as well as the smell of nectar juice was all to tempting for the hungry Endil and with grace, that none could match, she began to eat, trying to ignore the talk around her.
There that is the end of chapter one…do you like? I'm not sure if this has been done before, for all I know this is a completely new story so I am asking for you to take it easy. There are going to be many things you will not understand and they will be address in either the story or in Authors notes, if you have a question please address it in your review and I will try to answer it.
Please bear with me while I write this and review for it will help me get through it all in one peace.
Please do review
