So sorry for the wait. I have been busy entertaining my husband as he has been off work for the past several days. I hope this update will make up for it.

As always, I own nothing but the plot.

Ladythik

Chapter Four

Hadrian dreamed of Hogwarts that night. It was an odd dream about the coming year and the welcome feast, only the only thing the house elfs had served had been peppermint humbugs and firewhisky. The sorting hat had refused to sort anyone, it had sat on the stool singing kum-bya and talking about how they were all just one big family. When he woke the next morning before the sun even came up he was tired and cranky.

He woke Luna early as well and the two of them went about their morning exercises to waste some time. After transfiguring a basketball sized boulder into a tin tub and filling it with water he had Kane shoot a burst of flames at it to heat it and he took a relaxing soak in the steaming hot water. He used a couple sticks of dried cinnamon and some vanilla in the water to help him smell nice and Luna had handed him a glass phial of some type of wizarding shampoo for his hair.

It was the neatest stuff he had ever used. Instead of him having to rub it in and lather it up, as soon as it touched his hair it began fizzing and the bubbles worked their way all through his hair cleaning it thoroughly. He would have to get more of this stuff. When he got out of the bath he found that the shampoo had done more than clean his hair, it had caused it to grow and it was now a mass of curls down to just past his shoulders.

When he was done with his bath he emptied the tub and filled it back up for Luna to use before heading to let her know it was ready for her. She ate a quick breakfast to allow the boiling water to cool enough to use and then headed to wash for the day. Using the hand held radio he was able to talk to Charlie. It turned out that there were already over thirty reporters at the compound and more were still arriving. Dumbledore had arrived and had tried to come out to the plateau but had been chased off by an irate dragon, Kane informed him it had been quite funny and had mentally sent him the memory.

He managed to get Kane and Oracle, along with the other dragons, to agree to an owl coming out to the plateau with a few of the papers so he and Luna could read the articles so far. Once Luna had bathed and dressed she joined him for food and she spoke to her father for a few minutes on the radio while they waited for the owls to arrive. The headlines were all interesting and only one was ridiculous. The Wizard Globe had an amazing picture of the riders and their dragons landing at the other preserve and the title 'Rider's Ride Again, the legend proved fact.'

The Riders had refused to speak with the reporter but who ever he was had been able to find out that the riders were back because new riders had bonded with their dragons and were in Romania waiting for training. The article didn't mention who he or Luna were, only that they were young and had just bonded. It mentioned that the Riders had admitted to staying in the public eye for a while to come and that one of them had mentioned they couldn't wait to get home to Hogwarts after all this time, the person who had said it had been called 'Azar by the others.

The rest of the articles were similar, only one mentioned seeing a young man, him, on the back of a dragon when they had arrived at the compound. The reporter had questioned the handlers but, thankfully, the handlers had refused to give his or Luna's names. It did mention the bonded Dragons were named Kane and Oracle but that was all. One quote was from Charlie, oddly enough.

"You must understand, anyone who loves dragons also loves the legends of the Riders. They are dragon keepers version of Merlin himself. To betray their identity's to you when they so obviously do not want you to know would be tantamount to betraying everything we believe in. Not to mention what the dragons would do to us for the betrayal. It is best if you just stay out of the way until the Riders announce themselves because, while I may not be the smartest man, I do know that if you piss off a dragon you will not live to regret it."

He thought it was funny that they hadn't realized it was him yet, but he also felt thankful for that small mercy. He didn't expect it to hold for long with his luck, but any reprieve was welcomed. He and Luna spent the rest of the morning practicing quick mounting of their dragons and did a few other exercises to help their agility. After a light lunch the duo worked on their homework and practiced their spells. Kane and several of the other dragons commenting and instructing them to help them get better.

By the time for their evening meal Hadrian and Luna could cast all of their first year spells silently, which they normally wouldn't work on until sixth year and they could also do several easy spells without a wand. Kane had explained that it was due to their bonds and that eventually they would hardly need a wand except for wards and a few more obscure branches of magic. Oracle had explained that their bonds would also begin healing them physically and that Hadrian's eyes would cure themselves over the next couple of weeks.

Hadrian had been surprised but happy with that news. That night he and Luna both used the radio to speak to Charlie and her dad back at the compound, somehow Dumbledore had found out about the radio and had interrupted them to talk to him.

"Harry, my boy, I am so glad you are safe. Now I must insist you come back to the compound, it isn't safe for you to be in the middle of the dragons." the man said. Hadrian looked at Luna in shock and amusement before responding.

"I am sorry sir but Kane refuses to allow me near wizards until the other riders arrive. I can assure you I am perfectly safe. Voldermorts death eaters would be stupid to try and attack me now, and my name is Hadrian."

"But Harry, my boy, I am sure that your dragon friend doesn't understand that I am safe. Perhaps if you explained it to him he would allow me to come out too you. After all how do you know you can trust whoever the other riders are, they might be dark wizards."

"I will be fine headmaster."

"But my boy, I must insist, I can not in good concience allow you to stay out there. I am afraid if you can not convince the dragon to bring you back I will have to get the aurors to help come and get you."

Hadrian got furious and could see the same anger in Luna's eyes. When he spoke his voice was chilling in his coldness. "If you are so willing to sacrafice innocent lives for a useless pursuit feel free, but let me warn you now, any wizard or witch who comes within a mile of the plateau will not leave under their own power. The dragons have already decreed that they will not bother warning them, they will move directly to killing. I am safe headmaster and I do not appreciate you attempting to control me. I will speak with Charlie in the morning, good night."

He and Luna had shut off the radio in their fury and they each worked on their exercises until they were too tired to move and then collapsed into their beds.

Kane woke him before dawn and he could feel the constant pull from the past couple of days had more than doubled overnight. It was calling him relentlessly and he had trouble concentrating during that mornings exercises. Luna was having similar problems it seemed and they both kept looking east. By ten that morning they were both jumping out of their skin in anticipation and neither could sit still for more than a minute before they had to move.

When they had been pacing for close to twenty minutes the first roar sounded, one of the dragons flying in the air had spotted several small dots in the air off in the distance. Hadrian perked up as soon as he could see the tiny speks that were growing larger as they got closer. With barely a thought he hurried over and mounted Kane, it took only seconds after all the practice over the last couple days and Luna mounted Oracle right behind him.

"Lets fly." he shouted.

Kane went back onto his haunches and with a single beat of his powerful wings they were airborne, Luna and Oracle right behind them. As they flew over the compound on their way too greet the other riders he had Kane do a dive and the handlers cheered them as they swept past. He saw Dumbledore looking up at hem in shock but he ignored the man and they flew with speed he had never known.

Within a minute he could see the separate dragons and it only took a few moments more to see the Riders on their backs. With a loud whoop he urged Kane faster and the great dragon sent feelings of joy and sped up twisting and flipping in the air with a rumbling roar of welcome to the approaching dragons and their riders.

One huge crimson dragon had a rider that stood up on his back and waved towards them, yelling out to them in dragonspeak.

"Merry meet young Riders, I am Godric Gryffindor." Hadrian shared a look with Luna and motioned for her to speak.

"Merry meet good sir Godric, I am Luna Lovegood, Oracle and Hadrian call me moon. If you follow us back we will show you where you can make camp." Hadrian didn't speak, he just grinned before leaning with Kane as the large dragon banked sharply, turning back to the plateau.

The large dragon flew as fast as possible and soon the other dragons and their riders joined in with the sudden race. Only one other dragon was able to keep pace with them, the one that was a mirror image of Kane and had the silver haired man on its back. The man whooped as he passed them, grinning back rogueishly as he and his dragon twisted in the air, doing a loop which he urged Kane through. He heard the other riders whooping behind them as he led Kane back to the plateau and the great dragon landed in the middle, right next to their tent. Within just a minute the other dragons and their riders were landing around them.

Luna hurried over to stand by him as soon as she had dismounted. He stepped slightly in front of her, blocking their view of her, just in case they were a danger. Kane, feeling his tension, angled his huge form around behind them, blocking any from coming up to them from behind. He could see a few small smiles at his actions on some of the riders faces before the woman who he seen in his dream stepped forward.

"We mean you no harm young ones, you are safe with us." her words were stilted, like english wasn't her first language and she was translating her words in her head before she spoke them. He was confused as to why she didn't just speak dragontongue.

"I apologize for my lack of trust milady, but I have learned the price of betrayal too well. Welcome to the Romania Dragon Gates, I am Hadrian Potter. If you would like, I am sure the director of the Gates could find more comfortable lodgings but you are welcome to set up camp with us and the dragons out here on the plateau."

"Well Warrior and I shall join you here, if you are certain of our welcome? I am Salazar Slytherin, you may call me 'Azar." the silver haired 'Azar said in his lilting voice as he stepped forward. Hadrian couldn't Believe he was Salazar Slytherin, he knew he should have realized but he hadn't and Luna said he was this mans mate, she had to be daft. Godric spoke up next, laughing as he spoke.

"Thrill and I can not be seen as week, allowing you to sleep under the sky when we do not, count us in as well." he joked as he leaned against Azar.

A tall, willowy woman with ravens wing hair spoke up next. "Hello little ones, I am Rowena Blackthorn, you may call me Ro'. My bonded dragon is names Morrigan and she and my mate shall make camp out here as well." She motioned to a tall dark man when she spoke of her mate. He was tall and broad with skin so dark as to be almost black.

He nodded to them and spoke in a deep voice. "My name is Kai Blackthorn, my dragons name is Chioh, he is the deep blue fellow over next to Morrigan. I welcome you to the Riders."

The others introduced themselves one by one. They were from all over. He smiled when Helga Defayne, introduced herself and her dragon Mahogany, and then began asking if he was eating enough and fretting over his and Luna's small weight. Luna had whispered to him that the woman was a healer and the famed Helga Hufflepuff and that Ro' was Rowena Ravenclaw. They all grinned and began setting up a few small areas like his and Luna's tent and once they were done Godric, Kai and 'Azar decided it was time to meet with the Director of the gates. Hadrian smiled and mounted Kane waiting for them to follow suite. Luna gave him a note to pass to her father, informing the man of their leaving the preserve, and the four of them were off.

Charlie, Dumbledore, Mischa and several other handlers and reporters were waiting for them at the edge of the compound thanks to Luna having called ahead for them. Hadrian noted mentally how the others landed around him, protecting him. He jumped from Kane and once Godric, Kai and Azar were near him they all headed over to the waiting group. Hadrian held his wand loosely behind his back, ready to act at a moments notice and he saw Azar had daggers in his hands and Godric had his hand on his sword hilt, ready to draw it if necessary. Kai had a bow on his back and dagger in his hands, looking everybit the warrior.

When they got close Charlie hurried over and he hugged the burly dragon handler. He smiled when he realized Charlie was almost as tall as the three Riders and was certainly more buff than they were. He felt very small around them with his short stature and lightly muscled frame.

"Hadrian, merlin it has been mad. Dumbledore has been raving all night and all morning about you refusing to listen. He tried to talk some aurors into going with him to fetch you but we warned them all that the dragons had threatened death to any who interfered so they refused him." the normally jovial red head said quietly so no one else could hear.

Hadrian just shook his head and waited for the rest of the group to join them, ignoring the flashing cameras and questioning reporters. He noticed that the more people who got closer the more Azar moved in front of him, attempting to block him from view. He wasn't sure whether to be insulted or not about the man thinking him incapable of protecting himself. When Dumbledore tried to move around the three men Azar drew his dagger.

"Your best chance at living is ceasing your movements immediately." Godric spoke, his normally uplifting voice had gone hard and cold and he had drawn his sword.

"Now see here, Harry Potter is my student. You have no right to stop me from seeing that he is safe." Dumbledore said sternly, using the same tone he used on recalcitrant students.

Azar smirked wickedly before speaking in a tone that made Hadrians knees feel weak, "You are mistaken. If Hadrian, not Harry, attends Hogwarts then he is our student, not yours."

Hadrian could see the reporters scribbling away at their parchments, writing down this rare occurrence of someone daring to question the Albus Dumbledore. He also saw the headmaster look at them in exasperation before smiling patronizingly and speaking slowly.

"My dear boy, I am the Headmaster of Hogwarts and I have been for a great many years. I can assure you that I have not hired you, nor have I ever met you before today so Hadrian is not one of your students. You need to step aside and let me speak with him as I am his magical guardian." Hadrian was furious, he knew that Sirius was his magical guardian. Due to him never having a trial they had never been able to legally remove him from the position. He spoke up.

"Headmaster, you know as well as I do that Sirius Black is my magical guardian, appointed by my parents before their murders. As he was never given a trial they were never able to legally remove him from the position." He smiled brightly and his voice was sweet, the only one who knew he was raging inside was Kane, due to their bond.

"And as for you being Headmaster of our school, well, I am happy to say that we will be able to lift that burden from your shoulders as soon as we cross the wards. I am sure the old castle is waiting for us anxiously, after all we built her." Azar smirked. The headmaster turned red.

"Now see here, there is no need to lie. Hogwarts was built by the four founders, trying to claim something that is not yours shows terrible taste." he shook his head as though he was disappointed with them, Hadrian had trouble not laughing. He couldn't wait to see where this went.

"My name is Godric Landon Gryffindor, Lord Gryffindor. I am the eldest son of mine blooded line, second in age only to my elder sister Rowena Gryffindor. I am one of the four founders of Hogwarts young man and you will give me the respect I am due." Godric's magic flared out around them as he glared at Dumbledore, daring the man to speak again. Hadrian couldn't hold back his chuckle at Godric calling Dumbledore 'young man'.

There was a sudden explosion of whispers and shouted questions in the crowd and Dumbledore lost the twinkle in his eyes, his fury to great to hold it. "Godric Gryffindor was not a lord as none of his descendants have ever been able to claim the title, I would know. Neither was Slytherin so don't try that lie. And the founders lived over a thousand years ago, immortality is not possible without twisting a persons soul beyond redemption." he snapped out.

"We are not immortal lad, we are tied to this earth and our lives by our bonds with our Dragon companions. Rider's only age to a certain point and then they live for as long as their dragon, which as anyone kens, dragons live for several thousand moons. The eldest of us is Kai who is from Atlantis and has seen the passing of over six thousand years and still has several thousand yet to go. I can assure you that he is Godric Gryffindor and that I am Salazar Slytherin and that Helga and Rowena are riders as well. I suggest you stop speaking as you are only making yourself seem ignorant." Azar drawled out, his silver eyes burning with fire and his magic whipping around him.

"As for why no one was able to ever claim the Lord of Gryffindor title, well that's because I am Lord Gryffindor and I still live. It does not matter whether you believe us or not, what matter is that we will be returning to our school within a week. A few of our number will be heading to America to find the last rider but once they have found the lad they will be returning with him to 'our' school." with those words Godric slashed his hand at Dumbledore, pushing the man away with magic and then turned to Mischa.

Hadrian showed Azar around with Charlies help and then Azar offered Charlie a position of caring for the dragons at Hogwarts. The riders would do part of the work but several of them would be busy taking care of starting old classes back up and of working with the governments to fix the damage done by incompetent morons so they would need a little help to insure the dragons had regular and consistent care.

Charlie was of course elated with the offer and agreed immediately. Hadrian shared the conversation with Kane in his mind and the dragon offered to allow the dragon handler to ride him to Hogwarts if he was ready when they left.

"Hey Charlie, Kane told me to tell you that if you like he will allow you to ride with me as we travel to the school." he offered sweetly.

Charlies eyes went round and a blinding smile crossed his face.

"Oh wow, Hadrian, really. Oh wow, if he doesn't mind. I would love to. Oh wow, I have to go tell the others." the large red head hurried off to spread the news to everyone else. Hadrian laughed at the man before turning his attention to the founder.

"So, Salazar Slytherin. I must say you are not what I expected. Tell me are the stories true, are you a pureblood bigot?" he questioned with a slight challenge in his tone.

"How can I discriminate against blood when my mother was not pure. The rumors of my belief in pure blood were started by my ex-wife and my sons who were bigots. I have never held with that nonsense. As for the stories, well it depends on which one you mean." the man supplied.

"Well, I suppose the most important one would be if you are a dark wizard. There are stories that say you practiced dark magic and you murdered muggles. Forgive my rudeness I just want to know if I will be fighting you as well as your heir."

The man nodded in acknowledgment and forgiveness of his lack of manners before answering.

"I think that the way modern wizards and witches categorize magic is incorrect. You see back when we were first taught magic we learned that it was not the magic you used but your intent behind it. An inventive wizard can kill someone just as easily with a simple childs spell as they could with a killing curse. Back when we ran the school, and indeed for a couple hundred years afterward, there were no so called Dark Lords. We taught a class called ethics to all first year students which taught them the price of using their magic to kill or control. The class was taken from the required class list twenty years after Godric left and was taken from the offered classes a hundred years after we had all gone. It wasn't until after that that the issue of Dark Lords began to come about."

"We plan to take Hogwarts back to her former glory and to rework the curriculum. As for stories of me murdering muggles, well a year before I left Hogwarts there was a muggle barron. He owned quite a bit of land and he ran it for the king. He was a cruel man, and he was very immoral. He bedded children and small boys who did not invite his attentions. One of our muggleborn students was a daughter of one of his surfs and Rowena went to fetch her to bring her to Hogwarts. She had ended up being caught up in her work and the evening was upon her before she was able to make it to the mans land. When she arrived to see the girl she found her parents weeping in their cottage. The childs mother informed Ro of what was happening and Ro', who had a daughter close to the girls age, attacked and killed the man and took the girl away."

"The man had a son who was just as cruel and when his son returned to his fathers keep he was told of how the pagans, which is what they called us, had killed his father and stolen a child. He gathered sever men from his army and several from some of the other Lords of the realm and the army marched upon Hogwarts. They were unable to breech the castles wards so we didn't honestly care. That changed when after a month of them waiting they grew tired and began bringing in young magical children from their holdings and murdering them just beyond out gates. In our fury every one of us went out and slaughtered all of them but I was worse."

"I took pleasure in tormenting them before I killed them and I gloried in their deaths. You see, as a child my father had a younger brother. My uncle was jealous of my father and he took his anger out on my younger sister. He used magic to bind me and then he raped her in front of me repeatedly and I could do nothing to stop it even as she screamed for me. Eventually my father found us but it was too late for Meave, she was so full of grief and so damaged she lost her will to live and passed to the eternal lands. I can not abide any who force themselves on another for that reason and so I killed all who stood against us that day and rumor flew that it was because they were muggle. It was because they were child rapists, no other reason."

Hadrian thought it over and could find no fault with the man. If it had been him he would likely have reacted the same way. They passed another hour walking around and chatting with some of the keepers before they were found by a reporter from the Daily Prophet.

"Pardon me Harry Potter, but the prophet would love an exclusive with you." the man looked at them pleadingly. His had blocked his photographer and Hadrian could tell he was trying to be nice but that he really wanted the interview.

"Will you keep to what I say with out any embellishments or will you be as foolish as Rita Skeeter?"

"I will keep with what you say, I swear. After Skeeter crossed you she ended up refusing to do anymore personal interest stories for the next year and has refused to ever write about you again. She warned all of us to not cross you, supposedly you have better sources than we could ever dream of."

Hadrian smirked. Rita Skeeter had crossed him and Luna had been the one to tell him about her illegal animagus form, helping him to catch the witch and threaten her into compliance. He nodded at the man, consenting to the interview and led them all over to a sitting area in the courtyard. The reporter asked his first question after the photographer got a few shots.

"So tell me Mr Potter, how does it feel to be a Dragon Rider, something that was thought to be simply legend?"

"It is unexpected to be certain. It is thrilling to be on the back of Kane as he fly's through the air. Not even my Firebolt can go as fast as he can."

"There is rumor that there is another new Rider, what can you tell me about that?"

"I can confirm that there are two new riders. One has already been found and is back at camp, I will not reveal her identity until she allows it, but I am sure you will not have to wait too long. The third Rider has not yet bonded to a dragon and we are unaware if he knows what he is yet."

"Can you tell me how many Riders there are in total?"

"There were thirteen until me and the other two new riders so that makes sixteen of us all together."

"What do you plan to do now that you are a dragon rider?"

"Well I expect to spent the next couple of months training to fully complete the bond and then after that I plan to finish school. I am not yet sure what will happen after I graduate so that will have to wait and see."

"I have noticed your clothing, may I ask why you aren't wearing robes?"

Hadrian laughed at that before answering. "The day after I had bonded with Kane I spent learning the basics of how to mount him and how to care for him. I can assure you that regular robes and muggle clothing is just not possible with the constant moving and the hard work to tending to a dragon and riding one. I was lucky enough that there were some seamstresses here at the Dragon Gates to make me new clothes more conducive to my new lifestyle. They are honestly much more comfortable and I would suggest them for everyone." he grinned as Salazar chuckled next to him.

"One last question, It is rumored that one of the Riders claimed to be Godric Gryffindor and that the other founders were riders as well. Is there any truth to this rumor?"

"Yes, there is. All four founders are Riders and they plan to take their school back. We will be leaving for Scotland at dawn and they will be reclaiming Hogwarts and reworking the courses for the upcoming year."

After the short interview he and Azar met back up with Godric and Kai where they were speaking with the director. Charlie stood next to them all packed and smiling brightly while saying his goodbyes. Since they would be leaving at dawn the red head would be camping with them for the night. Dumbledore tried once again to get him to stay inside the compound but he refused when Kane roared angrily from the other side of the wall. With a last goodbye they mounted up with Charlie behind him and headed back to the plateau for the night.