AN: I do not own either HP or Black Panther.

The title is from a song by "Of Monsters and Men" of the same name.

"Hedwig?!"

Harry froze as he stared at the baby dragon in front of him, seeing T'Challa and Shuri glance to him in question. The dragonet, pale white in color with black freckles dotted on her hide, toddled over on the table towards him, her silvery eyes lit. She was about the size of a house cat and probably much more dangerous than one. Harry stared and stared some more, even pinched himself, hearing Shuri snort.

The creature let out a loud chirp, amused and happy, before she jumped towards him. Harry jolted out of his shock and caught her, taking care with her wings and fell backwards with the weight of a baby dragon. He laughed out loud as the baby dragon crawled up his chest and stuck her nose on the bare skin on his throat, giving him a rough lick.

"Yeah, that's you. Hedwig…" Harry trailed off, reaching up to wipe his eyes as tears pooled in them. "Hedwig… Oh, girl."

"I missed you," Harry whispered, running a hand along the dragon's hide and feeling the smooth scales of a dragon. "I can't believe you followed me here."

Hedwig chirped again, still burrowing into him.

"Oh, of course you did. Who am I kidding? And as a dragon…" Harry trailed off, stroking Hedwig's smooth flank and trailing over her wings. She had four feet and two wings at her sides, unlike some dragon species that he had seen before. He didn't care in the slightest what kind of dragon she was. She leaned into his fingers more as he touched her wings, small, vulnerable bones covered in leathery wings. "I love you too, girl."

And she had… "OW!"

Hedwig's sharp claws dug into his skin, drawing blood, and he gently pushed her off, onto his lap as he sat back up. She looked up at him with fondness in her eyes and then turned to face T'Challa and Shuri, who were both looking at him with wide but amused eyes.

"Harry?" T'Challa questioned, looking between him and the baby dragon in his lap. "Who is this?"

"T'Challa, Shuri, might I introduce Hedwig, my friend from my world? She was an owl back then but she followed me here through the veil," Harry explained, a smile still on his lips and his heart thumping quickly in his chest.

"What do you mean, she was an owl?" Shuri asked, her wide eyes still on Hedwig. "And can we come closer?"

Harry glanced down at Hedwig and saw her nod her head, her sides inflating with a deep breath. "It's alright with her. Don't worry about her hurting either of you. She knows who is friend and who isn't. As for her being an owl, she… died a few months before the final battle."

Shuri was the first to move closer, staring down at the baby dragon. Hedwig sniffed up at her and then toddled over to meet her as Shuri sat down cross legged. Harry watched as Hedwig stood up, propping herself up on Shuri's legs. Shuri let out a quiet gasp and let Hedwig sniff her, a tiny puff of smoke leaving the dragon's mouth.

"She died?" Shuri repeated, reaching out a hand hesitantly down to Hedwig, who nudged it.

T'Challa followed his sister and caught Harry's eyes, reaching out a hand to him. Harry reached out too and entwined their fingers, his breath catching in his throat at the memory. "She died protecting me when I moved from the Dursleys the last time. Voldemort had caught wind that I was going to be moved then and there was an ambush. He cast a killing curse at him in the air and Hedwig… flew in front of me."

A few tears moved down his cheek and he wiped them away again, dropping his hand down to Hedwig's back, just making sure she was still there. "I missed you so much, girl."

Hedwig arched into his fingers as Shuri blinked at her then backed up, turning to T'Challa.

"Somehow she followed me here," Harry finished, sighing as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. "Perhaps it was a veil thing. I don't know and I don't care. I have my best friend back, my first friend."

"I am glad," T'Challa remarked, his eyes drawn down to Hedwig, as the baby dragon moved towards him. "How big will she get?"

"Umm… I'm pretty sure she'll grow to be as big as a one story house," Harry answered, his lips twitching up into a small smile. "Maybe even bigger. I don't know what kind of dragon she is."

T'Challa sat as still as a waiting cat while Hedwig toddled over towards him, raising herself up onto his lap and taking a big sniff of him.

"As big as a house?" Shuri echoed, her eyes widening in awe. "That's going to be bigger than our rhinos. Bigger than our jets."

"That reminds me… I totally want to meet a rhino," Harry added, eagerness in his voice. "Do you raise them yourselves?"

"The border tribe does," T'Challa said, his lips twitching up into a grin and reaching out to let Hedwig sniff him. "I could take you to meet our herd later perhaps."

"Yes! In the meantime… I think Hedwig…" Harry trailed off, glancing at them. His eyes were narrowed in thought as he pondered something. "I think Hedwig will drink milk for now and then it's meat later when her teeth fully grow in."

Shuri stood up and continued to stare in awe at Hedwig. "I'll go get some milk for her. Do you think she'll drink a lot?"

"I don't know. I wasn't… Charlie was the one most suited to take care of a dragon," Harry replied, sighing at the thought. "And I knew how to take care of an owl. She isn't an owl anymore though."

Shuri nodded, narrowing her eyes and stuck her head out of the rooms, speaking with someone.

"Like a cat then," T'Challa remarked as Hedwig peered up at him, her silver eyes staring at him with suspicion, like a predator thinking about pouncing. He continued to hold out a hand, letting her make up her mind. Finally, Hedwig arched further towards him, touching her nose to his palm and crooned quietly. T'Challa reached out to lightly trail his fingers over her thick hide, his heart beating fast at the thought of petting a dragon. They were creatures of myth, of legend and one was actually here. He remembered reading about King Arthur's tale in college and enjoying the idea of chivalry and knights and dragons. And now...

He could see Harry grin out of the corner of his eyes.

"She probably smells me on you," Harry whispered, leaning into T'Challa a little. Hedwig turned to look at Harry, her silver eyes fond.

"Someone's coming with food in a few minutes," Shuri said, walking back to sit across from them.

"Thanks."

Harry reached out to stroke Hedwig's wings, enjoying the leathery feel of them. She crooned up to him, leaning into his fingers and apparently enjoying it too. "I never…"

"There is so much love in her eyes," T'Challa remarked, leaning into Harry too. "She loves you just as much as you love her."

Harry smiled at the other man's words. "Do you think we could keep her presence secret? I mean… just not let this news heard outside of Wakanda?"

"You're worried that someone will steal her? No one else is allowed in Wakanda anyway. No foreigner except for you will know she exists. I give you my word."

"I suppose if word got out when she was older and bigger, it would be okay. She needs to be able to fly first and I think it takes at least a few weeks."

Shuri reached over and held out her wrist, pushing a few things on her kimoyo beads. A light shone out and T'Challa watched as his sister scanned Hedwig, a blue light scanning over the dragon.

"I'll keep an eye on her status," Shuri said, glancing to Harry. "We'll be able to track her weight, health, and height through these."

"Oh, that's a great idea," Harry responded, nodding in response.

A knock on the door interrupted what T'Challa had been about to say and King T'Chaka stepped in, his eyes going wide at the sight that met him.

"Baba?" Shuri stood up and looked to their father.

"A conference in Vienna has been scheduled," T'Chaka said. "It is to be for the Accords. T'Challa, I want you to come with me."

T'Challa exchanged looks with Harry, who shrugged.

"I'll go too, if you want me along."

"I can look after Hedwig if you want her to stay," Shuri offered, grinning in excitement.

T'Challa rolled his eyes. "Shuri…"

"We'll be good, I promise." Shuri grinned at the two of them and Hedwig ran over to her, jumping onto Shuri's lap and looking at the them like she was an innocent young dragon. Harry raised an eyebrow and Hedwig opened her mouth, showing her baby teeth that were actually fairly big already.

"If you're sure about that," Harry said before glancing to T'Chaka. "Do you mind if I come with you two?"

"I would appreciate your expertise, Harry. You know of the Avengers and of the witch."

A woman poked her head in, a tray in her arms. "Princess, you requested milk and a few pieces of meat?"

Shuri nodded, scooping up Hedwig and walking over to open the door for the woman. "It's for her."

Shuri gestured to the dragon in her arms and the aide's eyes widened as she joined the four of them. She sat down the tray in the middle, asked if there was anything else she could do and then walked out. King T'Chaka stayed too, a certain intrigue in his eyes as they all watched Hedwig walk towards the tray.

There were a few slabs of small cut meat on the tray and a bowl of milk next to it. Harry watched as his old friend glanced between the two foods on the tray. Hedwig's tail started to shake, her small wings beat against her side and then she pounced on the meat, tearing it to pieces with her not so very small teeth. Blood spurted from the meat, ending up on Hedwig's teeth and mouth.

"She is a predator," Harry remarked faintly before letting out a quiet laugh. "Well."

T'Challa grinned.