The First Day

As Jack walked up to the Great Hall, his staff resting on his shoulder, for breakfast the next morning he ran into Hiccup who was walking up from his own common room. Like Jack he was wearing the same school robe, grey jumper, a shirt and tie except that the underside of his robe and the stripes of his tie were now yellow and black to match his house colours while Jack's had turned green and silver.

'Hey Hiccup,' he said as he fell into stride beside the freckled Hufflepuff.

'Hi Jack, going to breakfast?'

'Yep, care to join me?'

'Uh, are we allowed to sit on other house tables?' Hiccup asked nervously.

'Oh right. That is a problem,' Jack said as realisation dawned.

'Oh hey it's Merida and Rapunzel,' he said, pointing to two figures in red and blue ahead of them before running off with Hiccup to catch the girls up.

'I know, it's not really fair that we can't sit with each other,' Rapunzel said as they explained the situation.

'What do you think Merida?' She asked the redhead who had been walking in contemplative silence.

'Hand me yer timetables,' Merida demanded suddenly, holding up her hand in which they dutifully placed their timetables. She leafed through them and smiled, 'Well I think I've solved our problem,' she said in a satisfied voice.

'We share the same classes,' she explained happily as she handed their timetables back, 'we can walk to class together and sit next to each other'

'Oh right,' Hiccup said relieved.

'Well, glad to hear that's all sorted,' Jack said happily as they entered the hall, 'I'll see you guys in…Transfiguration then'

They all said a few parting words and then split off to their own tables and started to eat as the owls began to deliver the morning post and either read the newspaper or talked with fellow students.

When the time came for first lessons they all grabbed their books and met back at the Great Hall's entrance before heading off for the classroom.

'I'm so excited,' Rapunzel burst out happily, 'I've been looking forward to this so much!'

'Glad to hear it,' Jack said laughing.

'No more literature or history,' Merida said wistfully, 'I hated those kinds of lessons.'

They arrived at the class and waited outside the door, chatting, while the rest of the class turned up. Eventually Professor Toothiana opened the door and, once everyone had piled in, she started to sign the register. It took longer than it should have as Tooth had a tendency to quickly list several names in succession and then had to backtrack to find students who had missed their names the first time round.

When every name had finally been ticked off Toothiana began her lesson by giving a demonstration where she turned her desk into a pig and back, making the class gasp in astonishment. She then gave small lecture on the transformation formula and after that she had the class practice a basic incantation to turn matches into needles.

Merida proved to be quite good at the class, easily transforming the matches on her first go while Hiccup and Rapunzel took longer, waving their wands and reciting the spell repeatedly until they finally had a small pile of needles, or in some cases sharp matches. Jack was abysmal, he didn't seem to be able to concentrate enough to get the spell to work and he had to figure out a different way to focus his staff as it was too big to wave like a wand.

At the end of the lesson his matches hadn't changed and, while everyone else was filing out, Toothiana had told him, 'Not a promising first go Jack but give it time and I'm sure you'll get the hang of it'

'Well that was cool,' Merida said with a little more spring in her step as they left, 'What have we got next?'

'Charms,' Jack said in a deflated manner.

'Cheer up Jack,' Rapunzel said cheerily, 'We can't all be good at everything or where'd be the fun?'

Jack just grunted back in a non-committal manner, sticking his hands in his robe pockets.

'Aw, come on Jack, we thought you were all about fun,' Hiccup joked, putting his arm around Jack's shoulder while Merida linked arms with him and Rapunzel.

'Get off,' Jack said as he tried to shake them off, but not so hard that he actually would, and the three knew they'd got to him because he was smiling.

Charms cheered Jack up a lot. He enjoyed the guessing game like way they had to translate Mansnoozie as he started his lecture and nearly laughed himself off the seat when the professor blew gold sand out his ears in frustration at their slowness. Eventually they managed to figure out the name of the spell was Wingardium Leviosa and it was used to levitate the feathers that had been in front of each student's seat.

Rapunzel clapped delightedly as her feather floated immediately to the ceiling at her first incantation while Pascal chirped in encouragement from her shoulder and she spent the rest of the lesson happily renewing the charm whenever the feather floated back down. Jack was doing better in this class and was able to lift the feather up to eye height and tried to get it to chase Merida's which was listing slightly to the left, much to the red head's frustration.

Hiccup spent half the lesson repeating the spell with the necessary swish and flick but was unable to get the feather to do more than twitch slightly. Eventually he just started to jab at it with his wand, repeating the spell angrily. There was suddenly a loud bang and the feather exploded in Hiccup's face, leaving it covered in soot and his hair sticking backwards, making him look like a porcupine.

The class burst out laughing as strands of feather fell around Hiccup, including Jack and the others who clapped him on the back as they continued to double over. Professor Mansnoozie walked over to observe the charred table and Hiccup's blackened face, he waved his finger in a jokingly stern way and an image of a wand using the swish and flick motion appeared over his head. Use the right technique, was the clear message.

About then the bell rang and Hiccup gratefully began to pick up his slightly charred textbooks as the others gathered their feathers and placed them all in a box that Mansnoozie offered. He hurried out the class and headed back to the great hall for lunch while the others ran to catch up.

'Hey Hiccup wait up!' Jack called as they picked up the pace.

'Don't worry about how well ye did. It's only yer first lesson, anyway remember how Jack did in Transfiguration,' Merida reminded Hiccup as she squeezed his shoulder kindly.

'In my defence I didn't blow anything u…OW!'

'Sorry Jack; didn't look where I was going,' Rapunzel apologised as she removed her elbow from his ribs.

'Don't worry guys; it's not about the class. Okay it's mainly not about the class,' he defended as they gave him withering looks.

'Seriously! I'm just anxious to see Toothless between lunch and lessons'

'Toothless, who's Toothless?' Jack asked curiously.

'My friend, he's a dragon.'

'Another dragon?' Merida asked in surprise, 'What about Tiny?'

'Well, he's like my messenger owl. Toothless is my partner, he's staying with my friend Gobber, the Care for Magical Creatures professor'

'Can we come too,' Rapunzel asked hopefully, 'It sounds pretty cool to go and see more dragons'

'What are you any way, the dragon whisperer?' Jack asked cheerily as he brushed his staff along the floor, freezing it so a couple of Ravenclaws slipped over behind them.

'Yeah, something like that,' Hiccup replied mysteriously with a smirk as they arrived at the entrance of the great hall.

'Fine, meet me here after lunch if you want to come meet him'

They all agreed and went off to get lunch, although the fact that they'd arrived together hadn't gone unnoticed by certain people at their tables who glowered at them suspiciously. They had also been noticed by the headmaster, as they had that morning, sitting at his usual spot and whispered quietly to Tooth and Mansnoozie, 'It's already starting, and zhe year has only just begun. We shall have to keep a closer eye on them than we thought'

After lunch Hiccup guided the others out onto the school grounds and towards Gobber's hut.

'Why does this guy live out on the grounds instead of in the school like everyone else?' Jack asked with a look of disgust on his face as his bare feet sank into the slightly damp mud.

'I think it's traditional for the Care for Magical Creatures teacher to live out here,' Hiccup suggested, 'It's so they can take care of the animals between lessons'

'Well whatever, as long as we get there soon,' Jack replied miserably as his steps continued to squelch.

'Don't worry Jack, I think we're here,' Rapunzel said as they turned a corner and Gobber's hut appeared before them. While the lights in the actual hut weren't lit the small forge that had been added next to it was glowing with the flames within while smoke curled up from its chimney.

'Hey Gobber, Toothless, I've come to visit you both!' Hiccup called as they neared and the clanking noise inside the forge grew louder.

'Hiccup? Is that you ye little troll hunter,' a large man with a funny stone tooth cried happily as he stepped out of the forge, his changeable hand currently fitted with a blacksmiths hammer.

'Oh, and you've brought friends. What a surprise'

'Sorry I sort of invited them without asking,' Hiccup said apologetically.

'No it's just a surprise ye've managed to make friends so fast,' Gobber joked, pulling Hiccup into a backbreaking hug.

'So where's Toothless?' Hiccup asked. 'I promised the guys I'd introduce them to him'

There was a draconic roar from behind them as Toothless barrelled out from the trees in a swift black blur and pounced on Hiccup who started to laugh as the dragon nuzzled his face.

'So this is Toothless,' Rapunzel said politely while Pascal cowered in the weave of her hair.

'Doesn't look toothless ta me,' Merida said dazedly, Toothless had jumped pretty closely to her on his way to Hiccup and she'd got a pretty good look at a large set of fangs.

'I called him that because he can retract his fangs,' Hiccup laughed as he stood up and Toothless sat next to his side, looking inquisitively at the others.

'So guys this…is Toothless, Toothless these are my new friends Rapunzel, Merida and Jack,' Hiccup continued as Toothless began to approach the three, his head cocked slightly to the side in curiosity.

'Don't be scared, he won't hurt you,' Hiccup reassured them as they stepped away from the dragon unsurely, 'Just hold your hand out and he'll come to it'

Merida looked at the others and, seeing that they weren't willing to go first, stepped up and held her hand out. As Toothless neared she stopped breathing, anticipating that any second the giant lizard would attack, but then his head met her hand and suddenly she was staring into green eyes bigger than Rapunzel's that looked back innocently.

'Oh wow,' she breathed as she felt the warmth of the dragon seep into her fingers. She reached out her other hand and brushed it lightly across the smooth black scales along Toothless head and heard Toothless give a content purring noise.

'Aw, he's just a big softie really,' Rapunzel cooed as she and Jack approached and began to stroke the dragon along his scaly neck. Pascal suddenly sprang down from his hiding place and along Rapunzel's arm so he could stare intensely into the dragon's eyes, clearly weighing the dragon up. All Toothless did in return was give the chameleon a small lick in a friendly kind of way which seemed to work as Pascal spent the rest of lunch sitting happily between the dragon's ears.

The four settled down to play with Toothless while Gobber brought out some butter beer from his hut. He then began to regale them with stories from his own time in Hogwarts until Merida interrupted by asking:

'How come Toothless has a fake tail fin?'

'That would be because of me,' Hiccup answered guiltily.

'You hurt your dragon!' Rapunzel exclaimed in horror.

'It was a different time,' Hiccup said upset, 'and if I hadn't, we'd have never met and then where would I be? Still just a loser in Berk? A failure to my dad?'

'If it weren't for you two Berk would still be nothing but a pack o' dragon slayers still getting' themselves killed for nothing,' Gobber reassured him as he ruffled Hiccup's hair.

'Wait a minute,' Jack said confused, 'I thought Hiccup got Toothless after he was trained by a tamer?'

'Course not,' Gobber laughed, 'Hiccup was the first dragon tamer. He taught us everything we know'

'The first,' Jack said blankly, his brain unable to process the idea that little, nervous Hiccup had managed to tame a wild nightfury.

'You haven't told 'em?' Gobber asked incredulously.

'I'd be bragging to everybody I met. Well…tell 'em then'

'Fine,' Hiccup huffed. For the rest of lunch, he told his four friends the story of him and Toothless, stopping every now and then when one of them asked a question. When he was done they sat staring at him as he rested his back against Toothless' warm body and the dragon's tail curled over his legs.

'Cool!' The three suddenly said in unison, they thought it was incredible and wouldn't stop asking questions until the bell rang.

The time eventually came that they had to get up and leave for Potions. They all said a quick goodbye to Gobber and everyone gathered around Toothless to give him a final pet before heading off.

'Bye bud!' Hiccup called behind them as they walked back up the path to school.

'You really love him don't you?' Rapunzel asked with Pascal sitting back on her head.

'Yeah, he's pretty much my best friend,' Hiccup replied smiling.

'Oh Hiccup, I'm hurt,' Jack said in mock pain, 'I thought I was your best friend'

They all rounded the corner, giggling as Jack pretended to turn his crook on himself in joke sorrow. They then turned into the courtyard outside the school entrance which was currently full of other students walking around in groups.

'Hi Jack,' one Slytherin girl called out, waving at Jack until she saw who he was walking with and then stopped to whisper frantically to her friends who were all giving the group strange looks.

The four noticed that a lot of first years were looking at them strangely as well as a few older students from every house.

'That was weird,' Merida said as they stepped back into the school and followed Jack to the stairs to the dungeons.

'Well we're not exactly the most inconspicuous group,' Hiccup stated, 'I've got my metal foot, you and Rapunzel have the hair and Jack's got his flashy staff'

'My staff isn't flashy, it's cool,' Jack defended heatedly.

'Whatever you say,'

They arrived at the gloomy entrance to the Potions class behind everyone else and so where the last to get in which forced them to sit at the only two empty tables at the front. Jack sat with Rapunzel behind one cauldron and Merida and Hiccup behind the other. They were the only tables with more than one house colour, although they didn't notice it.

The current Professor had seemingly tried to liven up the otherwise depressing dungeons that served as the potions room by decorating it in hundreds of different woodcuts, all containing the form of a bear. The professor's desk was also littered with carvings as well as plain blocks of wood and what looked like several types of carving tools. A stuffed raven perched on one corner and appeared to stare out over the classroom with its black eyes.

Professor Whittler herself stood at the head of the classroom, signing people off as they entered. When everyone had taken their seats she placed the register quietly on her desk and stepped forward, opening her mouth solemnly.

'Oh, here we go. Here comes the speech,' the raven suddenly complained making everybody jump in their seats.

Professor Whittler scowled and, in one swift movement, brought her wand out and flicked it. A broom that had, until then, been propped quietly in a corner sprang to life and swatted the bird clean off the table before busily starting to brush around the room.

'That's enough out o' you ye overgrown pigeon,' the professor cackled before turning back to the class speaking in a sombre and serious voice:

'Welcome to Potions, for many of ye this may well prove to be the most trying and complex of classes as ye learn to mix yer own batch of deadly poisons, wondrous cures and even how ta brew enchantments themselves. The more talented of ye may even get it right and not blow yerselves up. Now hurry up dearies, turn to page 3 in yer books and start brewing that cure for boils. Be sure ta leave the results in yer cauldrons at the end o' the lesson,' she finished cheerily waving her hands in a hurrying fashion.

'Shouldn't you teach us how first?' A Ravenclaw asked worriedly from the back.

'Where's the fun in that dear?' the professor continued as she returned to her desk and began to hack away at a lump of wood, 'Ye might as well learn to run before ye can walk. Or burn yer eyebrows off, either way'

There was a general scramble as each group fetched the necessary ingredients for the potion and any particular cutting, crushing or mixing tools. Jack was impressed at how fast Rapunzel moved, quickly chopping ingredients and tossing them into the cauldron one after the other, occasionally looking back at the book for further instructions before returning again to the cauldron.

'If you need any help just ask,' he said as he leaned back in his chair.

'Sure, crush these roots into a powder for me,' Rapunzel replied, not looking away from her work which meant she didn't see him stick his tongue out. Pascal did, however, who pointed to the roots with his tail and made a crushing motion with his hand and a no-nonsense look on his face.

'Uh, Merida I don't think you should be adding that yet,' Hiccup's nervous voice floated over as Jack got to work.

'No worries, it can't matter too much when ye put them in. I mean the potion doesn't care when they get put in just so long as they are,' Merida's voice replied, all confidence.

Another few minutes ticked by, Jack presented Rapunzel proudly with his powdered root and was given another job while Rapunzel surreptitiously mashed in the lumps he'd left.

Suddenly there was a FROOM! and a dazzling purple light filled the room.

After Jack and Rapunzel blinked away the last dancing spots of light in their eyes they saw Merida and Hiccup standing beside a smoking cauldron. Both of their faces were blackened with soot and the hair had been blown back until it was at right angles to their bodies, Merida's particularly managed to stretch a fair distance behind her before drooping at the ends.

'Next time follow the recipe,' Whittler lectured from her desk, having not looked up since the explosion.

Then the laughter started.

It took a long time to die down and Merida and Hiccup could do nothing but stand rigidly in front of their cauldron still petrified from the explosion. Only Rapunzel and Jack, after he poured in the final ingredient into their cauldron, rushed forward to see if they were alright. Rapunzel took Merida's face in her hand to look it over for burns while Pascal chirped worriedly on her shoulder. Jack, meanwhile, tapped Hiccup on the head twice and laughed gleefully as Hiccup swayed slightly.

'Are you guys alright?' Rapunzel asked worriedly as she pushed Jack out the way to see Hiccup.

'Buh,'

'Muh,'

'Scared by the bang were you?' Jack asked loudly into their ears. This seemed to wake them up as the two turned angrily to Jack, the visible skin under the soot turning red, and said:

'Shut up Jack!'

'It was her fault anyway,' Hiccup continued, angrily motioning at Merida.

'My fault,' Merida retorted, 'How is it my fault?'

'You were the one who kept chucking stuff in when you weren't supposed to!'

'You had the book; it was yer job to tell me what ta do.'

'As if you'd listen you psychotic Scot,'

The two suddenly stopped arguing as they realised Jack and Rapunzel were laughing at them again.

'What's so funny?' Merida asked in a deflated voice as she calmed down.

'Your freckles,' Jack managed between laughs as he and Rapunzel resorted to leaning on each other for support, 'they're…they're turning blue.'

The two fell back into hysterical giggles as Merida and Hiccup looked back at each other and began to wipe their faces clean with gasps of horror. It was true, their freckles were blue but not just the colour blue; their freckles were glowing.

'Oh gods,' Hiccup moaned as he gingerly touched his face.

'Please tell me this isn't permanent!'

'And you thought we stood out before,' Jack said happily as he and Rapunzel put their arms around the two.

The group looked behind them and saw the rest of the class staring daggers at them as their cauldrons bubbled unchecked.

'Don't worry about us,' Jack said reassuringly, 'We were just checking up on our friends.'

A dozen unsmiling faces stared back and a few couples began to mutter to each other under their breath. Fortunately the bell rang and students began to pack up their books and potions equipment although not before giving the four another dirty look as they left.

Eventually the four were left on their own with their arms still wrapped around each other.

'What was that about?' Merida asked, confused.

'I have no idea,' Jack replied in equal confusion.

'Well, let's hurry up anyway, dinner's about to start,' he added, brightening up.

The four rushed around to gather their things, thanked Professor Whittler and wandered out into the empty dungeon, smiles returning to their faces as they chatted and joked, looking for all the world like a perfect picture of friendship.

Many miles away on an isolated rock in the middle of a raging sea Daniel Fayefield shivered and gathered his auror's robes around him. This was not a cushy job and the hours were way too long but at least the pay was worth it.

'Hey Daniel,' Alexander Woodcross greeted as he walked down the dark corridor. 'I hear your daughter's got into Hogwarts'

'Yeah, I got a letter this morning,' Daniel replied proudly. 'She's a Slytherin like her old man. It sounds like she's already got a crush too,' he added darkly, 'some 'amazing' guy called Jack Frost. Apparently he can use a staff at eleven but I don't believe a word of it, he's just showing off to impress the house'

'Did you say Frost?' A dark, intelligent, voice asked behind them.

'Shut up Black. We're not playing your games'

Pitch Black stood up in his cell, a thoughtful look in his eye.

'Frost,' he said to himself, 'the little Frost boy in Hogwarts already?'

'I told you to shut it!' Daniel yelled. He'd always thought Black was creepy.

'I really must thank you Fayefield and you Woodcross. If it had not been for your incompetence my education here would have been greatly hampered,' Black said half to himself, still walking towards them.

'What are you on about?' Alexander asked irritably, he suddenly felt a little scared, which was ridiculous…were the shadows moving?

'Azkaban,' Pitch replied, stroking his finger along the walls of his cell, 'this place had been the primary habitat for the dementors for years. The very stones are ingrained with their powers and I decided to spend a few years studying what they left behind. It's been very informative, I can tell you. Now, though, I think I've learned all I could, so I'll be leaving'

'You must be kidding,' Daniel scorned, trying to hide the whimper in his voice, 'Your wand is locked up safe and sound in the dungeons and you'll never get your hands back on it'

Pitch leaned forward, his face nearly pressing against the bars, and smiled horribly as if he was enjoying a joke at their expense.

'I will now'

There was an eruption of black sand and mist pouring out of the cracks in the stones to form the bodies of great black horses that charged at the guards, their nostrils flaring. The two wizards pulled out their wands, their mouths opening to form a spell, which turned into screams of fear as their heads filled with terrifying images that overrode every other sense and emotion.

When it was over another horse arrived, reared up on its hind legs and smashed the bars of Pitch's prison. It trotted forward to Pitch's outraised hand and reverently placed a thin black wand into it.

'Meet my Nightmares,' he said to the bodies lying before him, 'so much more of an improvement to the dementors'

He waved his wand experimentally and smiled at the familiarity of the feeling. He began to laugh at the sheer thrill of freedom before he waved his wand in a command to the Nightmares.

'Find him,' he ordered and the Nightmares reared and ran in obedience to his words..

His laughter filled the cells of Azkaban again as the Nightmares galloped away, their manes and tails streaming behind them like a group of dark comets.

Author's note: So Pitch has made his first appearance, what do you guys think? Just so you know I am currently uploading at a pace I can't keep up with. From now on it will only be about one or two chapters per week. Hope you guys are still enjoying this and thanks for sticking with the story :)