Disclaimer- I do not own Harry Potter.
A/N: I've condenced the chapters to make them a little longer. Hope you enjoy!=D
Nardrick swept across the moonlit lawns of Durmstrang castle with unsurpassed stealth. His black winter cloak was drawn in around himself as a measure of camaflouge, though winter was still months away. As Nardrick paused in the shadows of the school's garden walls, he took pleasure in mentaly noting the many excurrsions he'd taken this direction, and the cosequinces he'd avoided. After all, he was breaking a rule that came with severe punishment if broken. His pleasing thoughts were cast aside as he observed the grounds. He was huddled against the southeastern corner of the garden, its twenty foot enchanted walls looming above him. Nardrick cast his eyes across the sloping lawns, starting with an inspection of the Lake, on the eastern edge of the castle. The Lake lay unmoving, like a giant mirror layed flat. The deep, black, creature infested waters reflected the half-moon darkly, and though Nardrick couldn't see it now, he knew that on the far side of the Lake it emptied into a large river.
Moored in the shallows, meerly two stone throws from the Lake's rocky shore, floated the Lady of the Lake. Durmstrang was famously known for its enchanted midevil themed ship capable of diving underwater and its enormous capacity. These functions had initialy been installed for means of stealth and secrecy, but in time they also came to serve as ways of protection from the muggle eye. Nardrick rememberd his first trip upon the ship. It had been his first year at the school, in fact it was his first introduction to the life of school. He thought back to the letter and package that had arrived nearly two months before his eleventh birthday. It stated his acceptance to the school, wich was of no surprise, and provided him with a list of required and optional supplies. It also included a map of an air route to Mannheim from his small farm house just south of Bremen, in the Lower Saxony landscapes. Nardrick understood the meaning of the air route, as both his parents and brother, Ethan, went to Durmtrang, and quickly opened the box that had arrived with it.
Nardrick's thoughts were cut short by a lonely howl cutting through the still tension of the warm, late summer, night air. The image of a slitghtly used, school owned carpet, packed in a cardboard box quickly faded from his mind. Instead his mind flipped to the source of the sound. The cry he'd heard came from a leopard-backed wolf, a creature know to wizarding locals for its resemblance to a snow leopard. The wolf always feeds most heavily during the half-moon, and though its primary choice isn't human, it still would attack one if the need arose. Throwing caution to the wind, Nardrick let his inspection continue on to the castle.
The castle was more of a fortress than castle. It looked like something taken out of a mid-evil history book. Squat battlements surrounded the towering building at it's center, and in his mind, Nardrick saw the flat lawns that encompased the school building. At each of the four corners of the battlements rose a small tower, currently abandoned, but previously manned by sentries in the early days of the castle's life. Nardrick squinted towards the building at the center of the castle. It was nearly twelve stories tall at the tip of it's tallest tower, and the main body of the structure was eight floors. The dungeon floors went down four levels, the bottom of wich, was off limits. Nardrick new why, but did not dwell on the matter, as he was in a hurry.
After noting with satisfaction that all the lights were off and, asumably, everyone asleep, Nardrick slipped from the deep shadows of the garden wall. Using the cover of his dark cloak to help him, he made his way towards a looming forest, it's tallest trees reaching nearly three-hundred feet. Shadows hid the forest under a dark black blanket, obscuring any veiw of what lay beyond. Nardrick approached the edge of the forest with caution while remembering the howl he'd heard before. Another howl pierced the night, as if punctuating Nardrick's thoughts. Before entering the edge of the forest he muttered quietly, "Lumos Maxima." Little did he know he had been seen by a keen-eyed onlooker.