Amongst the centaur herd
Prologue
DISCLAIMER: Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling. I own nothing save this fanfiction's plot and some OC characters.
SUMMARY: The stars have spoken and the centaurs must abide by them. When centaurs take Harry away from the doorstep, he will be raised as a centaur and follow their beliefs. How will the rest of the wizarding world react? Follow Harry as he deals with loss, betrayal, prejudice, ignorance.
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Magorian, the lead centaur, tossed a bundle of sage into a crackling fire in the middle of a secluded patch of raw dirt. The brilliant flame flared as the herbs sailed into the pile of burning wood. A column of black smoke billowed harshly into the air. Frowning, the centaur stared intently at the fumes and shuffled his hooves with irritation.
"Mar has dimmed considerably... and yet Pluto is closer to us than it should be," He muttered darkly to himself.
A red haired centaur trotted forward towards the fire and gently sprinkled mallowsweet petals over the fumes and instantly the flame subsided. The smoke faded into a glimmering silver and curled lazily into the sky.
"So is Jupiter, my lead." He whispered with a doleful tone as he gazed up into the sky.
"Ronan," A third voice warned threateningly, as a black bodied centaur stepped into the small ring of light provided by the flames. "Do not interfere with our lead's findings."
Ronan lowered his eyes and focused on the black centaur, unfazed by the harsh tone. "Bane," He greeted with a neutral voice. "There is a great stirring. Of light against evil."
Magorian seemed to ignore the pair as he looked intently at the slowly moving wisps of smoke. Tossing his head back, he fixed his eyes on the stars. To the ordinary human, it would seem almost as if the lead centaur was bored but Magorian's flickering eyes betrayed his conflicting emotions.
"A dark presence has dulled and yet there have been extreme evil happenings tonight," he said, loud enough for the two other centaurs to hear. He paused for a minute, frowning. "Dark soul magic?"
"A horcrux," Bane said with a low voice.
Ronan lowered his head with respect. "My lead, Jupiter is closer than ever. Extreme evil has occurred but there is also extreme good," He declared.
When he was answered by silence from both centaurs, Ronan sighed and directed the conversion subject to something that had discussed many times before.
"In the south, the stars speak of a great human foal. Do you not remember the prophecy we read in the stars?"
"Which one?" Bane asked with a dark expression.
Ronan stared at Bane. He then cleared his throat and spoke in Equine, a horse language.
"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies..." Ronan recited. Magorian shuffled uneasily while Bane remained motionless.
"While it would appear to us that the stars have focused mainly on 'Dark Lord will mark him as his equal' tonight, I fail to see how this has concerns us as a centaur herd. The prophecy is mainly concerned about a 'Dark Lord' and his possible defeat. Centaurs were not involved," Bane sneered.
"Bane, this Dark Lord refers to Voldemort – the beast who had slaughtered many of our kin."
"And?"
"Today, he was stopped. The war was over. Hence Mars' dimming. And... a human foal is responsible for this."
"What's your point?" Bane asked with a bored tone.
"We owe this human foal a life debt of our entire herd!" Ronan exclaimed angrily as he stamped a hoof down in the dirt.
"We do not," Bane hissed at him. His eyes flickered briefly to Magorian who chose to remain silent throughout the conversation.
"To the point then. As we speak, the foal will be given to a non-magical home where he will be neglected and abused. Sending him to a safe home is the least we can do for him."
"And where will this be?"
Ronan closed his eyes and took a deep breath, bracing himself for Bane's anger. "Last night, there were 35 visible stars in the constellation Sagittarius." He said slowly. "Tonight, there are 36."
For a moment, Bane was silent. Then, his eyes widened with disbelief as he registered what this meant for the centaur herd.
"We will not raise a human within our midst!" He bellowed, rearing up onto his hind legs and aiming a few kicks as Ronan who backed out of the way.
"Bane!" Magorian said harshly. Instantly, the angry centaur subsided but he paced back and forth in the meadow, shooting Ronan murderous looks.
"The stars speak of it, my lead," Ronan said to Magorian, once he was sure Bane wasn't going to attack him.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes," Ronan replied firmly and met the lead centaur with determined eyes. Magorian pondered for a moment before making a decision. He looked towards the stars again.
"Bane, I signal for a gathering."
"But my lead–" Bane began to protest.
"Now."
Submitting to Magorian's authority, Bane bowed his head with respected and cantered off to summon other centaurs.
Ten minutes later, twelve centaurs stood in a ring around the fire. Normally they would have stood tall and proud but tonight was different. There was a nervous tension in the forest air. It was clear that they were agitated – shuffling hooves, swinging tails, tense expressions.
"Bane. Antol. Kauto. Ronan. Firenze..." Magorian greeted formally and bowed to each respective centaur. He did the same to the other centaurs in the ring.
"Magorian," They chorused back.
"The stars tonight have exposed to us that a great victory has occurred. As most of you would realise, they tell us of the falling of the Dark Lord, who calls himself Voldemort." Unlike most wizards and witches, none of centaurs cringed or flinched at the mention of the name – they merely stood in solemn silence.
"The cause of the downfall of the Dark Lord is credited to one young human foal. We have lost a great number to the Dark Lord. We owe this a foal a life debt."
"That's lie!" Bane shouted.
This outcry prompted other centaurs to continue in his steed to protest and object to this claim.
"Untruth! Misreading! A centaur does not owe anything to any human! A foal no less!" They cried.
"SILENCE!" Magorian bellowed and reared onto his hind legs. Immediately, the centaurs quietened although there were some dark mutterings under their breaths.
"The stars have spoken! Jupiter burns bright before our very eyes. Do you not see Pluto dimming? Or have your eyes become one of a human's?" Magorian asked viciously. It was common knowledge that centaur eyesight was more advanced than humans' since their eyes had adapted to stargazing.
"We will bring this human into our midst and teach him the ways of the centaur. We will guide his paths and bring him to understand that-"
"Fate is not to be trifled with! As lead centaur, it is your responsibility to understand this." Antol, a golden haired centaur with a cream coloured pelt, quietly spoke up, interrupting Magorian.
Magorian leveled a glare at Antol for his disrespect and interruption.
"This is not fate we are changing. It is the wellbeing of the human foal. Should we influence his fate then so be it. It will not be our intention. Raised away as he well be, he will be subject to the narrow-minded abuse and neglect of non-magic humans. Watch."
Magorian shuffled forward to the fire, which was now a dying flame, and rekindled it with a sharp blow. Lifting a bundle of sage up into the air more all the centaurs to see, he tossed it into the fire. The smoke burst forth from the now-burning sage and the fumes formed intricate symbols in the air.
"The Rune of Neglect... The Rune of Abuse... The Rune of Fear... The Rune of Hatred..." The centaur said slowly as he observed the symbols. "This is what will happen if we let the foal be."
Ronan stepped forward and repeated, "Last night, there were 35 visible stars in the constellation Sagittarius." He said slowly. "Tonight, there are 36."
"Raised with the ways of the centaur," Magorian chanted in Equine as he sprinkled mallowsweet into the fire, copying Ronan's actions from earlier.
Instantly the flame turned into the shade of white and the symbols in the air twisted into new ones.
"The Rune of Love... The Rune of Knowledge... The Rune of Parenthood... And the Rune of Childhood," Magorian intoned.
"The Rune of Power is present also," Kauto, a white centaur, whispered.
"So it is decided. We will raise the boy with our herd," Magorian declared, giving Kauto a sharp look. None of the centaurs objected to this decision, apparently all convinced by the fire that it was the right decision – all but one.
"Bane, summon a thestral. There is task that must be completed tonight," Magorian commanded. Bane's jet black eyes narrowed with distrust and disagreement. Nevertheless, he abided by Magorian's order and cantered away from the scene.
And an hour later, a skeletal thestral landed on the porch of Number 4, Privet Drive just as an old wizard and witch Disapparated away. The thestral lowered its reptilian head down and pulled back the blanket covers to expose a baby human with a lighten bolt scar on his forehead. With a surprisingly gentle toss, the toddler was put onto the back of the thestral and the pair flew away from the dark suburban street.
The next morning Petunia Dursley would open her front door to find a pile of blankets. For a few moments, she will wonder why and how it got there but will dispose of the blankets with no further thought. The Dursley family will grow up without the presence of, what in their eyes, was an unnatural freak.
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Albus Dumbledore sighed heavily as he collapsed onto his chair in the headmaster office. Weaving layer after layer of wards at a muggle area was tiresome work. The Blood Wards were extremely difficult, even for a great wizard like himself. To add to his increasing irritation, the Wizengamot had requested several meetings concerning the fortunate demise of Tom Riddle. The Hogwarts headmaster rubbed with temples to ease a growing headache.
"Are you sure that Harry is safe with those muggles?" Minerva McGonagall asked for the umpteenth time, oblivious to Albus' clear fatigue. The Transfiguration professor nervously wrung her hands on her robe and stared at Dumbledore with a worried expression.
"Minnie, be rest assured. They are Harry's only living relatives. I have even employed a Squib to watch over him," Albus told her, the familiar twinkle absent from his eye.
"But are you sure that there aren't any other living Potters? Harry could take an inheritance test at Gringotts to show his ancestry. The Potters are a very noble house and would have no doubt had an extensive family. James Potter once mentioned a second cousin from his mother's side to me–"
"The Blacks?"Albus cut her off.
"Most definitely not! Perhaps Charles Potter, James' father could have had nieces or nephews."
"Charles Potter's sister, once removed, married a Lestrange."
"Impossible! Charles never had a sister!"
"It isn't a well-known fact that Charles had a younger sister who was a Squib. She married Lestrange for money and status after she was disinherited. Lestrange married for blood purity." Albus explained with barely disguised impatience.
Minerva's mouth snapped shut. When it came to Death Eaters or Dark families, she was fiercely against them since she had suffered the loss of two beloved nephews in the previous war.
"If it reassures you, I have collected a few blood samples from Harry to activate these instruments." Albus lifted a silver instrument, which looked vaguely like a silver magnification glass, from his desk."This monitors Harry's physical wellbeing. While this alerts me if any magic is performed inside the household." He lifted up a pendulum-like instrument that gave off a whirring sound as Minerva critically inspected it.
"That's very nice and all but shouldn't Harry be raised in a magical family? That way he can grow up in our world. I hear the Bones family are willing to adopt him."
"No. He will be pestered by fan mail and hero worship. It's best to let him grow up away from all that."
"The Bones would never let that get into his head. But what concerns me more is that he wouldn't be trained and ready enough, should You-Know-Who return..." The Scottish woman trailed off, the horror of Voldemort returning clearly scaring her.
"Call Voldemort by his name, please. Or Tom Riddle if you must." Albus reprimanded her sharply, effectively avoiding the question.
Before Minerva could speak any further, Albus rose from his desk and made to depart the office. "Now, would you be so kind to let an old man have his rest, Minnie," He said as he walked away to the Headmaster Quarters, retiring for the night.
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Underneath the canopy of the Forbidden Forest, there was a curious centaur colony gathered around a strange being who'd entered their midst. They stood in between gnarled roots of a wizened oak tree which casted an eerie shadow over the baby boy. The forest was completely dark except for small spots of dappled moonlight which had been filtered into the forest fog.
A young centaur foal hid behind his mother's hind legs. "What did that thestral bring that foal, ma? That centaur doesn't have any hind legs! Is it sick? What happened to it?" A barrage of questions sprung forth from the youngster's mouth.
"Hush kia, it is not a centaur. It is a human," the mother centaur whispered with undisguised awe.
This declaration prompted another wave of questions from the foal but was quickly stopped by a sharp spank on the foal's rump by his uncle, Firenze.
"Let our lead Magorian, explain," He reprimanded.
Half a dozen centaur foals resided in the herd and they all had questions concerning the newest member of the family but they didn't speak for fear of being spanked like their unfortunate friend, Burlip. The twenty other adult centaurs who had not attended the gather also had the same questions but were wise enough not to speak out of turn.
Magorian thumped a hoof to the ground for attention, since all interest had been directed towards the baby boy who lay on a soft pile of dried grass.
"The Gathering of Elders have Seen the future of our kindred from the stars tonight. We Saw a new fate for this foal. This foal is to be raised with us. He will join our herd and be accepted as a member of our colony. I cannot answer all questions, since the moon, stars and planets remain unclear." Magorian paused to consider something for a moment before continuing.
"But what is clear is that this foal, that goes by the name, Harry James Potter, will join our herd. I expect each and every one of you to welcome him and treat him as if he were a centaur. Be rest assured that Harry will not remain two legged while he is with us, as there will be rituals performed to convert him into a centaur."
"But as a young foal, Harry's magical core is unstable and once it is stabilised, when he has reached 16 seasons old, he will become a true centaur."
"Ronan! He is now your responsibility. You and your mare, Aconite, will raise him as your own."
The two centaur couple stepped forward in the darkness of the shadow and Aconite, Ronan's wife, lift up the baby boy in her arms.
"Oh Ronan, he is such a sweet foal for a human," She crooned gently and nuzzled the sleeping boy.
Ronan wasn't so sure. He had promised to be the foster father for the human only because nobody else had volunteered. Harry will be handicapped by his lack of four legs, he thought, worried for his new son.
The centaur colony departed the family and resumed their nightly activities, some with excitement, and others with uncertainty. And one with anger. Bane was quietly fuming in the back of a willow tree.
No matter what the rest of the herd thinks, I will not accept that human as part of the colony, he vowed.
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What do you guys think? Please read and review!
One question though, do you want Dumbledore to be the grandfatherly type or the manipulative type?
I'll be okay with each but I want this fic to suit your tastes.