Harry Potter/ Lord of the Rings

Chapter 2: So cold

Disclaimer: I knew something was missing from the first chapter. Do you think they would sue me and because I have nothing, revoke my computer time at the library?

If anyone was there in the top of the mountains they might have seen the glimmer in the sky that became six glimmers and then six small bodies hurtling towards the peeks below.

Even though no one saw the six beings crash into the mountains, their presence sent a physic shockwave which spread out through the land.

On the road traveling south an old man cloaked in grey paused and turned towards the west. Healer.

In a tower of obsidian stone an old man cloaked in white turned away from a crystal orb and looked towards the west. Scholar.

In a distant forest near a pool of clear water an ethereal woman of great beauty peered deep into the calm waters before turning towards the west. Seer.

In another distant forest, this one darker than the last, an old man cloak in brown turned from his animal companions and looked towards the west. He hoped the others could handle this as he felt it wasn't of animal nor plant nature and therefore didn't concern him. Grower.

Heading away from dark forbidding mountains the darkly cloaked figure paused, halting the eight similar figures, and turned towards the west. Whatever it was, it was weak and didn't feel to be a threat but he would kill it if it ever crossed his path. Warrior.

In the dark forbidding mountains a creature was gaining back its powers slowly and felt something go through his non-physical form, something that could either hinder or help him in the future. Leader.

To the far-east, two old men cloaked in blue jerked but did not pause in their battle against the dark beings surrounding them. Something interesting was happening and because of their mission they were not to be part of it. It didn't really matter to them though, here in the east everyday was an adventure. Trouble. Fun.

It wasn't the impact with the ground that woke them nor was it the cold or the pain from their changed bodies, the newly changed six beings were awoken by a feeling.

Waking up they recognized those around them by the feel of their auras alone as their appearance was so changed. They had no time to ponder their new bodies as they felt despair once again. Dismissing their bare state they all headed off towards the feeling, with one of them picking something up off the ground as they went.

They made their way into a crevice on the face of the mountain that opened up into a large cave with two paths. The first path led someone they could feel a cold breeze coming from, while the second path they could feel despair and loneliness. They went silently down the second path and came upon a nest with five eggs that compared to the tallest of them reached their neck. The feeling was coming from the nest, checking the eggs they found only two had survived and they were cold to the touch.

The red-headed one began to cast a warming charm at the eggs but the male blonde and bushy-haired ones stopped him. A warming charm cast directly on the egg would have overheated it and cooked the small life inside. They instead cast warming charms on themselves and, after clearing out the dead shells, surrounded the egg. Not long after they gave in to the pain racking their bodies and feel into a healing sleep.

It was some time later with time moving on as the little ones slept before they began to rise. They were slow to wake with a soreness but no lingering pains in their bodies. The first to wake was Harry and shortly after Hermione, Draco, Neville, Ron and lastly Luna.

Though disoriented they quickly recognized the changes in their physical bodies. First they had aged backwards several years and looked to be around eight years old, with Hermione as the tallest and Harry and Luna as the shortest. The second change was their state of undress, which Ron was the first to notice with a yelp and quick bid to hide his privates. And the third change they noticed in the dark was that their skin glittered with an inner light.

It was then that six stomachs rumbled. Looking around the dark cave the only food they could find was the three dead eggs and each refused to eat whatever was in it until they looked through the whole cave system and maybe they could find some clothes.

Problem was everyone but Draco wanted to go but some had to stay behind with the eggs and only Harry really trusted Draco. So with some protest they would split into two groups; Harry, Ron, and Draco would go look for other food and Hermione and Luna would stay with the egg and Neville would be first defense against anything that could pop up.

They walked back through the tunnel they vaguely remembered and went the other way towards the cold draft. They hardly felt the change in temperature because the warming charm they used adjusted with them. Exploring the caves they found that all the rooms were large and at what they thought was the main cave the entrance opened up wide enough for several Hungarian Horntails to fit through at once and it was towering with gold, jewels and other treasures. It was in this room they found some old style clothes and other clothe to cover themselves with.

Most of the caves were empty and some had weapons and empty armor, and a lot of it was tiny armor for people about their size. Not even Draco was clueless to the implications that they were either in goblin territory or someone employed hundreds of child soldiers not even in their teens yet. Either option was a bad one. It wasn't until the last cave near the entrance and exposed to the snow of the mountains that they found food.

There were piles of herbs which Ron and Harry recognized as thistle, nettles, mustard grass an seeds and piles of milkweed. In another corner was a small pile of frozen fish and what looked to be legs of goats. Harry and Ron were used to the sight of the dead animals having traveled to market and either had a hand in making meals or watching, so they wrapped the meat in clothe to carry while Draco wrapped a large pile of nettles.

On the way back to the egg chamber they picked up a large cauldron and after dumping the gold packed it with ice and snow. It was Ron who remembered to taken the wooden ends of the broken weapons so they could use it to build a fire.

Once back with the others they built a fire, Hermione, Ron, Luna and Harry had camp experience with non-magical fires, and set the cauldron on to melt the ice and snow. While waiting for the water to thaw and boil the boys described the cave system and concluded that they were in a dragon's den. Due to the armor they came to the thought that the dragon fought against goblins and since its nest was left cold it must have been captured or killed while outside the caves for whatever killed it would have taken the treasure and the eggs.

In the light of the fire they dressed in the clothes that didn't have meat wrapped in it and saw the other changes to their bodies. Starting with the most notable of changes was Hermione. Where before her hair was dull sable brown it was now a dark golden honey which flowed straight down her back in a cascade like silk. Her skin gained a natural tan that would have caused her skin to turn red before and lastly her eyes; her eyes had turned a shade of amber not unlike Remus'.

Next was Neville. His skin, which was brow with all his time spent outdoors or in the greenhouses tending to plants, had lightened to a pale creamy texture. His hair, blonde before, had darkened a few shades until it matched Hermione's and his eyes had turned green. It wasn't a green like Harrys' but it was the color of new leaves or grass after the rain, his eyes had gained the color of the Earth itself.

Ron was the next big change. Instead of his Weasley carrot top his hair had become a rich blood red, his skin was tan and clear of freckles and finally his eyes; Ron's eyes had turned such a dark black that the iris disappeared and if you looked directly into them you could lose your way in the dark.

The last three didn't really change all that much but the small changes that did come were painfully obvious to those that knew them.

Harry's black hair had, if you can believe it, darkened even more until it looked as if it pulled in the light around his head. His skin became pale and rosy looking, finally his eyes had turned a violet color that seemed to shift from light to dark.

Luna kept her pale skin and vacant looking expression but her eyes became like Harrys' in an ever-changing purple. Her hair actually lightened from its pale blonde until it was a luminescent silver.

Then Draco, his skin had become tan and unlike the pale before it made him look healthier. His hair kept its blonde color only darkening a few shades, but it was his eyes that held the biggest change. His eyes turned from grey to blue and instead of a pupil it had crisscrossing white lines that looked like a child's drawing of a star.

It was hours later with their hunger and curiosity satisfied that they once again broached the subject of the eggs that lay between them. But given that their bodies were once again young and unused to the hours they kept, they quickly drifted off.

If maybe they stayed up an hour more they would have heard and then felt a great beast enter the caves where they slept and thought themselves safe.