A/N – Another chapter done. I wanted it originally a bit shorter, but then the Gruff happened and it turned out into a very useful exposition. Normally I'm not fond of it, but it frankly was long overdue, even if it will make many of you frown in confusion.

Read, enjoy and review. Seriously guys, reviews are what most of people here enjoys the most. So spoil us with them.

o-0-o

The White Court vampires were interesting and Harry tried to avoid openly glaring at them. They were drop dead gorgeous, yet the warning from Aurora was alive in his mind and he kept a wary eye on them.

He was aware that he was protected by his position, yet he still didn't like the gazes from some of them. He felt like he was a meal for them and that didn't make him comfortable. He slowly exhaled, his breath forming a small cloud, and then he reached for his sword. The metal was strangely comforting and providing him with a much needed confidence.

It had something strange to itself. It managed to keep him focused and banished any of the doubts he had. As well as push the emotions he sensed from the vamps aside. He didn't know if he was making it up or there were some enchantments on the blade that kept the influence of the vampires at bay.

He knew that the White Court was refined and the most reasonable of all, but he also knew that they also fed on other beings. An idea of being a meal for the predators of the supernatural world, even as pretty as those vampires, was not appealing to him and he preferred staying whole.

"You know that we prefer willing partners?" someone said and his head flew in the direction of the voice. Only to find Lara Raith smile of all things at him. "I can read your emotions and you seem afraid of our presence."

"You don't have the best track record," Aurora said coldly, a dagger in her hand. "I can and will skin you alive if you touch him."

"Peace," Sarissa said as she glared at Aurora. "Keep your emotions under control. She's not worth the trouble. And Lara is more than aware of how terribly ends feeding on a child of winter."

Lara felt silent and Harry smiled at her in triumph, enjoying this small victory he achieved over her.

o-0-o

I stumbled out of the Nevernever close to the Stonehenge and looked around. The sun was slowly rising, the last remnants of shadows being chased from between the stones. The golden light of the star and the energy of life flowing through the stones.

"Perfect," I muttered and Sirius looked at me. "The stones are full of magic and form a circle. Ideal place to summon beings of the Nevernever."

"They're not a circle now," Sirius pointed out and I smiled.

"The meaning is clear, they were a circle," I said and walked forward. "This place is too old and too powerful for the appearance to matter. As long as the intent and the belief is clear the circle will work."

Sirius frowned and I wasn't surprised by this. This group of the practitioners was a weird one. "How the beliefs and intent can make it work?"

"Magic," I said and slowly exhaled. "The magic I practice is a system based on emotions and beliefs. I believe strong enough." I scooped up a small stone from the ground and showed it to Sirius. "That thus is connected to one of the big pillars. I will be able to affect them."

"So if I made a doll of someone I hate and believed it is his representation I could hurt him?" Sirius asked with a mischievous look to his eyes.

"Voodoo," I said and smiled. "That's the basic principle of it. Pretty effective branch of magic, especially against big and nasty beings."

Sirius shuffled forward and I ignored him for a moment.

I wholly focused on the monument in front of me. The symbolism was important when summoning something as big and nasty as Mab and I didn't want to give her a single chance to break out of the circle.

She wasn't one of the really scary beings that could smash this world to atoms, but she was still dangerous enough. She had the power to kill me, all of my friends and everything in the radius of several dozen miles.

I opened my Sight and looked around, searching for the place where the druids and priests made offerings, summoned gods and played with magic. I could summon her standing anywhere else, but the symbolism wouldn't be as strong.

I stopped in the very same place as the priests of old. The sun was behind my back, its energy passing through me and then into the circle. I smiled and then moved my arm, the staff pointing towards the circle.

"Mab!" I called out. "Mab! I summon thee, Queen of Air and Darkness, I summon thee! Mab!"

At first nothing happened, but when I spoke her name for the third time a geyser of water shot into the sky and once the water was gone she was there. Her form motionless, yet her eyes were watching me and then they focused on Sirius.

A single smile appeared on her lips and then she nodded. "Good job," she said. "You found Sirius Black and brought him to me. Your task is completed and one of the favors you owe me is paid."

o-0-o

"What can you tell me about the White Court?" Harry asked in a murmur, his hand moving through Aurora's hair. "They seem interesting, in a strange way."

"The Raith's are," she agreed, kissing him softly. "Other families are less so. They feed on emotions, fear, desperation, anger or lust. Raith's are sex demons. They prey on lust and pleasure and sexual gratification and are masters of seducing their prey. In many cases their prey comes to them and wants to be fed upon."

Harry shuddered and then relaxed when Aurora moved closer to him. He wrapped his hand around her side and smiled, kissing her. "So, how can I protect myself?"

"Love," Aurora said with a grin. "It doesn't only mean sex, in fact sex isn't necessary for it. It means caring for each other, protecting each other and the emotional bond. Because you are with me, Lara Raith, or any other Raith can't feed on you unless you are willing to do it. If they force you to do it...imagine sulphuric acid poured onto their whole being until they back away."

"That's painful."

"That's so painful it can drive them insane and maim them for life," Aurora said and reached for a nearby goblet filled with watery wine. "Iron is a poison to fae, but if it is in small amounts we can cope with it and there are some amongst us who are immune to it. For the White Court it is much worse. Their inner demon howls in pain and their mind can't survive their beast howling. The bond between mind and the demon is a strange one, but one can't live without another and one can't survive the suffering of another."

"So since I'm with you and you protect me," Harry said with a sigh, shifting into a more comfortable position. "Why did Lara flirt with me and behaved as if she wanted to fuck me?"

"Because she is a scheming politician," Aurora grinned. "She knows that you impregnating her would unsettle you. Make you easy to control and guide. Her power is weak now, she's the strongest White Court vampire out there, but not as strong as a Queen ought to be. She wants to fully remove her father out of the equation, but lacks the muscle to do so."

"So she is here to gain power or at least not lose any," Harry said and looked at Aurora fondly. "And she wants me," he whispered kissing Aurora.

"Yes."

Harry sipped wine from his goblet and considered what he knew, what he suspected and what Aurora knew. The White Court was always scheming, no matter the time nor the world at large. It was always the most deceitful Court of all, easily blending in with humans and finally it was possibly the most dangerous.

"They're not the most dangerous," Aurora said and Harry looked at her. "They want to make you believe they are such. The Black used to be, but Stoker in the nineteenth century was used by the Whites to see them die. The Red has more mortal muscles and holdings, while Black has more magical muscles."

"So, how did the Whites managed to do it?" Harry frowned. "They are outgunned and outnumbered."

"Data and favors," Aurora said with a sigh. "What did I teach you about knowledge?"

"It is more valuable than gold," Harry said with a grin.

"You're smart," Aurora said and gave him a look. "Tell me, what does it mean for the White Court?"

"That while they lack the manpower, they have knowledge and know how to use it the most efficiently."

The sly smile and a purr was all Harry got before Aurora pressed against him and kissed him fiercely. "You are learning well, my love," she whispered between one kiss and another.

o-0-o

Lara Raith was a woman, err, a being that saw many gods and other rulers and they didn't scare her. Even tho Mab managed to send across a message that she was dangerous, scary and shouldn't be underestimated.

"Your Majesty," Lara said, forcing some of her usual seductive tones into her voice. "I come here to negotiate in the name of my father, the White King."

Mab regarded her coldly, the two trolls to her sides tensed and ready to attack. Winter was a logical place where passions ran high, but logic was above it and Mab had centuries of experience in negotiations. Lara glanced at her own bodyguards, her sisters and with a single gesture ordered them to stand down.

"We suggest an agreement of non-aggression and trade," Lara said and a flicker of smile passed across her features when she saw Mab's eyes narrow for a second. "My father and I want the power of the Red Court broken or reduced, a thing you also want and we believe we can gain from this arrangement, Your Majesty."

Mab leaned back in her throne and waved her hand. The two trolls relaxed and moved back. "Lady Raith, what do I gain from this arrangement? I can stop fighting my sister and allow her to freely take to the field against the Kukulkan and she will kill him... in three months."

Lara allowed herself to smile, the expression normally making humans drop to their knees and behave like mindless drones. "You could, Your Majesty," she said and the smile grew. "But we know that you don't want him destroyed. Not yet, at least. You want him weakened and forced to negotiate with the Council so that when Fomor come his court is able to provide armies to our cause."

Mab nodded and her eyes flickered, the color slightly shifting. "Yes," she said, her manicured fingers moving along the ice of her throne and leaving deep grooves behind. "I want that. The question is, how can you, lady Raith, help me achieve that goal with this agreement."

"Courts have information on each other," Lara said and paused. "Our strongholds, our weaknesses, our command structure and so on. I can arrange for some of it to be leaked to the White Council, but for a price."

"Everything has a price," Mab said her eyes a pair of emeralds. "Speak yours."

Lara smirked and then looked at Mab. "We, the White Court, are vain creatures that love pleasures of flesh and mind." She focused on her inner demon and her eyes became glossy as her skin started to shine. "What I want is a single favor."

Mab's eyes narrowed into slits that blazed with fire. The only evidence of her temper running high. "You have the gal, vampire," she said after a moment. "To demand favors, expensive commodity, but so is your contribution."

Lara smiled and bowed deeply. "Your Majesty, I only ask for what is fair and what is beneficial for both of us."

o-0-o

Sirius Black looked around the suite he was given. It was far bigger than what he was used to and the servants were all waiting for his summon to fulfill whatever were his wishes. He picked a goblet from a table standing by the window and looked out.

He was close to the top of the central spire of the fortress. Dozens of smaller towers and buildings attached to it like parasites. All of them were made out of the strange ice and stone he was seeing everywhere. Blue in color and perfectly smooth, yet glowing with all of the colors of the aurora borealis.

"It certainly is more comfortable than Azkaban," he said sipping the strange mead. "At least there are no dementors and I can do whatever I want."

His gaze slipped across the towers and towards the massive walls of the fortress. They looked more like a feature of the landscape, so massive that one could mistake them for hills. They too were made out of the same strange stone and ice. Atop them dozens of smaller towers and between them Sirius could see sentinels walk.

He was used to Hogwarts with all of its beauty and power, but this fortress was different. Hogwarts was a school first and foremost. This was a fortress and the seat of power of Mab, the being he didn't want to underestimate nor did he want her displeased. If the fortress was to anything to go by, her powers were uncountable and her servants were legion. A thing that bode badly for those wanting to attack her.

"Welcome, Lord Black," someone said and he smiled when he saw Sarissa enter the room. "I hope that your stay here is pleasant."

"Yes, it is," Sirius said with a smile. "When will I be able to see my godson?"

"Soon," Sarissa said and then smiled. "I have an offer for you, from Her Majesty."

"Go on," Sirius said, sitting down in one of the armchairs by a window. "She saved me from the class of the dementors and that is the least I can do for her."

"Her offer is simple, your fealty and loyalty, in exchange for access to the resources of Winter and unlimited access to your godson. The last one of course once you are mentally and physically ready for it." Sirius wanted to protest, but paused when Sarissa looked at him. "I studied enough about medicine to know when you need rest and peace. So listen to me on those matters."

"What would Her Majesty gain from this arrangement?" Sirius asked and laughed, the noise barking and reminding very much of a dog. "Even if I behave like a fool, I can see a deal where one side gains everything and second almost nothing."

Sarissa inclined her head in agreement and then smiled. "We believe that you and your house can be of use to Winter, you know the British society of practitioners or what you call wizards and know how to deal with them. The knowledge we might suddenly discover much more important than before."

"And you want me to back you," Sirius said and then frowned. "Her Majesty won't tell me how am I supposed to deal with my lovely cousins or any other family member?"

"No, we won't care about that," Sarissa said and Sirius' face was almost split by his smile.

"I will be willing to swear those oaths."

"Perfect, Lord Black," Sarissa said with a slight curtsy. "In two weeks time you will be asked to swear those oaths. Until then, enjoy our hospitality."

o-0-o

When Harry once more descended into the dungeons Duddley changed and Harry smiled when his cousin. They weren't really cousins, but habits were dying hard. Looked changed and maybe even apologetic.

A thing Harry never ever expected to see from Petunia or Vernon. Their hate of him too big to be changed, yet for their son there was a sliver of hope. A small one, but it was there, a thing they didn't have.

"So, Duddley," Harry spoke, his voice smooth and strangely pleasant. "Did you think about what I wanted you to think?"

"I did," Duddley said, his beady eyes focused on Harry. "What I did towards you wasn't the best," he said and swallowed. "But the parents encouraged me to do it."

Harry's smile was cold and could froze lakes, a thing with his Unseelie heritage quite possible, but then it warmed up and he nodded. "So I noticed," he said and paused. "I am still unhappy with you and you won't get out of dungeons soon," he said and Duddley shrunk, hiding even more in the corner. "But it won't be this dreadful place, the guards will show you your new apartment, if it can be called that."

Harry smiled seeing Duddley brighten, his cousin after faced with very bad and almost impossible to survive odds knew how to survive and change. Maybe trading him to a Sidhe noble for a favor or two would not be necessary or at least not to one that would torture and maim him.

o-0-o

Harry let out a hiss as he rolled away. Spikes of metal leaving grooves in the ice where he was seconds ago. The next strike crashed onto his shield and the strength pushed him back.

Aurora was not going easy on and her strikes were vicious and only a single moment of his distraction could end with him maimed. Harry narrowed his eyes as the whip hissed through the air and then he moved.

His shield caught the strike and sent it aside before he made a single step and then struck at her. His sword breaking through her defense and leaving a grazing hit against her armor. It was not enough to destroy it. But the shockwave went through it and into her body, making her shudder and lose her balance for a second.

"You seem to be learning," Aurora smirked and then a dagger flickered out of her hand. "But not fast enough."

Harry screamed and moved his head out of the way. The dagger instead of hitting him in the eye carved a long cut through his cheek. "You weren't supposed to try to kill me!"

"Love, pain and risk of death will motivate you," Aurora said as she hurled two more. "Yes, they are all sharp."

Harry shuddered and deflected the first one with his sword. Second slammed into his shield. Punched it and stopped inside of his arm. A cry ripped out of his throat. Then stopped when Aurora's whip slammed into his shield, the spikes caught onto the dagger and then she yanked it back.

The force threw him onto his back and Harry started to see stars in front of his eyes. The pain was overwhelming and he paled when he saw Aurora reach for the next daggers.

He rolled to the side. The pain in his arm the lesser issue than the fifteen inches long shard of enchanted silver ready to hit him.

Ice exploded in a spray of shards in front of him.

His eyes widened when he saw the dagger lodge itself in the ice so close to him that he could see it move.

Clenching his teeth he got up and yanked the whip back. Aurora let out a yelp of surprise, but then she let go off it and it smashed into Harry's face.

"That's enough," Syd said, stepping in. "Harry's a mess and you are drained, Aurora."

Harry nodded, spitting blood mixed with saliva onto the floor. A dagger was deep inside of his arm, a warm trickle of blood flowing down the sleeve of his shirt. Harry grimaced at it and wondered if he couldn't tear it out, but then he remembered that there were miniscule thorns along the edge. Removal of the blade was a long and painful process even with a skilled healer getting it out.

"You are mean," Harry said as he wiped the blood flowing down his face. "Those daggers, only my sister can pull them out."

"You could pull it out," Aurora said with a smirk. "But it would end badly."

An hour later Harry hissed as he watched scissors cut through his armor and the leather he wore underneath it. The amount of violet and red swollen spots that were on his skin was disturbing. The pain was a distant thing when the adrenaline coursed through his veins. Now, now it was a more real thing.

"And you are too stubborn for me to give you something for pain," Sarissa said and plucked without any mercy a shard of metal that embedded in his shoulder. A trickle of blood flowed out, but she ignored it and kept on cutting through the metal and leather. "Be happy that you can feel something in the hand."

"Poison," Harry said and winced as he looked at the bloody mess. "I know that the spikes in the whip have some."

"And she scratched you once or twice," Sarissa said and gave him a look. "Do you remember the slightly brown edge of the spikes?" Harry nodded and Sarissa smiled. "Resin, it is poisonous and in smaller amounts can cause nausea and migraine."

"Not enough to be noticed," Harry muttered as he leaned back on the cot and sighed. "But enough for her to finish the duel."

Sarissa nodded and then gently started to work on the dagger, trying to ease it out. "I will need to have a talk with her. The hooks or thorns they have are too big of a risk in a spar," she said and as she tugged at it and Harry yelled in pain. "They are hard to remove and I know what they are. Every other healer will assume it is a simple, straight blade."

"I guess," Harry said through his clenched teeth. "Just take it out."

Sarissa nodded and then yanked it out of the wound. He let out a roar of pain and then it came out. Blood gushing out of the wound as if a plug holding the dam together was pulled out. Before much could spill, Sarissa wrapped it in bandage.

The cloth was soaked in a mixture of drugs, potions and some other things. It didn't smell the most pleasantly, but it did stop the bleeding fast. She tied it around the wound and then looked at the rest of scratches, swellings, cuts and other wounds all over Harry's chest and arms.

"You really got battered," Sarissa commented and then looked at the scraps of his armor laying on the cot. "The armor is a mess, too."

Harry glanced at the ripped at torn mail, a pang of guilt appearing in his mind and then shook his head. "Aurora used magic to enhance her strikes. The armor, I thought it would survive such attacks."

"The armor that has magic woven into its structure will survive such strikes," Sarissa said and then shook her head. "The one you used doesn't have the necessary magic." She the smiled sadly. "I needed to cut it to actually get to the wounds you have. And there is no magic that can survive against the Unraveling."

Harry hissed at the name and moved away in visible fear.

Sarissa's eyes narrowed dangerously as she looked at him. "Harry?"

"It's not me," he said, his voice shaken and scared. "Something else acted... I don't know what."

"I'm sorry for what I'm about to do," Sarissa said as magic gathered around her.

"What..."

Harry was unable to finish the sentence as the ice grew from everywhere around him. Before he could do as much as move the tendrils of the substance were wrapping around his limbs and torso. Moments later he was wholly covered in ice that was inert to his magic and ignored his attempts of breaking the bonds.

o-0-o

Mab looked at the ice sculpture holding her son and then diverted her angry gaze towards Sarissa. "Explain," she hissed in a voice that would make human ears explode. "What made you turn him into an ice sculpture?"

"There is some parasite inside of him," Sarissa said and then glanced at the sculpture. "One of magic."

Mab wanted to strike down Sarissa, but then approached the icy form and touched it carefully. "How?" she asked.

"That's not a question I can answer, mother," Sarissa said with sadness flowing from her voice and body language. "It isn't a spirit of knowledge, but something more malign and evil."

"A shard of some human soul," Mab said and her eyes darkened. "I thought that the White God was smart... " She shook her head in disgust. "The magic to do it must have come from the Outside."

"The White God?" Sarissa frowned. "Why would you blame him?"

"He was the one that created the humanity," Mab said with a shrug of anger and indifference. "The humanity that somehow was at some point corrupted by the Outside. It isn't the same thing as That, but is close."

"Can you heal him?"

"Only if he wishes for it." Mab sent her magic into the ice and it started to shift and change. "The damage is not as extensive as the Enemy makes it and is focused in one place. And it revealed itself too soon for it to truly do major damage."

"He was weakened from the loss of blood and poison Aurora uses on her weapons."

"And the thing assumed it could leap when he was weakened," Mab said with a malign look to her eyes. "One that is responsible for it won't die any time soon. I need a new toy as Slate is getting boring."

"Tracking him down will be hard, almost impossible," Sarissa commented, an edge of caution to her voice. "We have nothing that could be used to connect whatever it is nestled in Harry's head to its owner."

"We have nothing," Mab agreed and looked at Harry's frozen form. "But it is a matter of time before whatever it is that is in Harry will be removed and our agents can learn of the cause of this. Now we only need to wait and let his defeat it."

"How soon should he be healed?"

"In a matter of days or weeks at worst," Mab said and then regarded her son with a cool gaze. "Sooner if he fights it as strongly as he can. I know he hates being trapped and he will do all he can do to break the ice and creature's hold of his body's."

o-0-o

Court of Titania was a treacherous place, as was any faerie court, but after being for so long amongst the fae and their Sidhe nobility Elaine knew how to navigate it and how to avoid falling for the most obvious traps. Here she was also under protection of Titania and even if she saw hungry gazes of some more wild nobles, they stopped when they landed on Fix who shadowed her.

Court of Mab resided in a single, massive fortress carved out of ice and stone in places where human body would freeze in a manner of minutes. Court of Titania was its opposite wild, vibrant, rich with energy and life, made out of dozens of open, silk pavillons with beings moving from one to another as they pleased.

"Do you think it is necessary to speak to him?" Fix asked quietly and Elaine shot him a questioning gaze. "I admire his wisdom, but do we need his help?"

"Yes," Elaine said and sighed, worry appearing on her face. "The stakes are high here. I watched your duel with him and the other three Sidhe. Tell me, would Mab be willing to use her own daughter and two high ranking members of her court to protect him if she didn't think the stakes were high?"

"No, I guess not," Fix said and Elaine allowed herself a smile.

"Exactly," she said as she passed between a pair of minotaurs guarding an entrance into a tent set aside and surrounded by a thick forest. "We need information and I won't dare to venture into Winter. Not with what I saw with my scrying happening. Mab is throwing a lot of power into protecting her domain and after those Red Courts raids I doubt I could slip through the guards."

"What informations do you need, young one?" someone asked and Elaine looked around, her eyes quickly getting accustomed to the dim light in the pavillion. After few seconds she managed to find the relatively diminutive being, barely five feet tall and with a set of massive horns on his head, more of his features hidden by the brown robe and cowl.

"Sidhe of Winter," she said and then added, picking her words carefully. "Her Majesty tasked me with investigating the rumored son of Mab. I discovered what I could and learned what was possible, as well as found some of his hair and blood. Alas, more is beyond my reach. He is safely hidden in the land of Winter and spying on him would be a foolhardy idea, Red Court tried the same and they already lost several nobles."

"You are of course aware that this is a knowledge I cannot share cheaply?"

Elaine winced at this, remembering how precious was knowledge to any fae, those old and powerful even more. But her options were limited and she didn't have any other good and reliable source of information. Queens knew what she wanted to get, but their cooperation would be even more expensive to acquire. A favor owed to the Eldest Gruff, a champion and advisor of Titania, opposed to a favor owed to Titania was a lesser burden and less dangerous too.

"We can bargain," Elaine said with a smile and pulled out the small pouch with the blood and hair she gathered. "Inside of this you can find dried blood and hair of Harry Potter. A thing that is of some value."

Eldest Gruff's eyes shone and then a smile appeared on his face. "Yes, yes," he said, his hand slowly stroking his beard. "That is a thing of some value and of a great potential. But also comes with a great price. If Mab knew of its existence, her forces would be storming Summer this very moment."

"Yet she doesn't know and I'm sure that you can use it well," Elaine said and then smiled brightly. "Will it be a sufficient payment for the knowledge I seek to find?"

"I believe so," the Eldest Gruff said and shot a look at Fix. "Leave us, Knight," he ordered. "You are forced to report to your mistress everything you see and hear and that is not a thing I appreciate."

Fix wanted to protest, but after a second wavered and nodded, leaving the two alone.

"Sit." The Eldest Gruff reached for a comfortable armchair and sat down before looking at a similar one. "This will take a long while."

Elaine nodded and sat, facing the Eldest Gruff and feeling his power and might. A thing she didn't want to see unleashed. She knew that she was powerful, not as powerful as her ex, but still a powerful wizard with few decades of experience. Alas, against the Eldest Gruff she didn't stand a chance.

"So the Unseelie," he said quietly, forcing her to strain her hearing. "The fae of Winter, ruled by the Queen of Air and Darkness. Our ancient enemies and the guardians of the Outer Gates. The things I can tell you about them are Legion and would take a decade, if I wished to tell you everything."

Elaine swallowed and then considered her words. Thinking how to put into sentences what she wanted to discover. "The son of Mab, can you tell me if he really is her son and who is his father?"

"I can tell you if he is her son," the Eldest Gruff said and then took the bag from her, opened it and inspected the hair inside. "As for his father. I am unsure. All I can tell you that Mab laid with someone old and powerful. Someone who is as powerful, if not more powerful than a Queen of the Fae."

Elaine frowned, gears of her mind working as she mulled over the Gruff said. The Fae couldn't lie, but they didn't need to be fully honest either. A thing that made them devilishly dangerous and treating with one was a game. So he knows, but doesn't want to tell me, she mused and then hid those thoughts. A calm smile on her face. "So the Eldest, can you tell me more about the one with whom Mab laid when their son was conceived?"

"He is powerful and ancient... As ancient as the Fae. He is bright and is like a day, strong at noon, weak at midnight. His names and titles are legion."

Elaine's eyebrow rose in question. The description was puzzling and mysterious. More mysterious than she expected it. Ancient beings that were as old as the Fae, that was narrowing it down to some half forgotten monstrosities and a lot of various deities. She frowned at the word bright, something sounded familiar about it, yet she couldn't quite guess it.

"I think that I won't ask more questions about his father," she conceded and then moved onto another thing she thought was important. "He is a scion of two immortal beings and has heritage both from his maternal and paternal line. I never found such a case in the scrolls and books I studied..."

"Because such cases are extremely rare," the Gruff cut in. "During the whole length of my life maybe there were few dozen such beings. All of them had a short and interesting life and tended to cause chaos wherever they went. Much like the starborn." He smiled and Elaine felt a shiver pass down her spine. "However beyond that, I can't tell what his powers will be or how significant. The bloodlines of his are strong, but oft strong bloodlines had weak offsprings."

"So until he comes into his powers, a thing that can take centuries we can only guess what kind of a being he will be," Elaine said and pursed her lips. "The starborn, what are they?"

Gruff's eyes shone with some curiosity and then his lips moved, forming a predatory smile. "You don't know. Do you?"

"Know what?"

"That you are one of them," he said and looked into her eyes. "Born when the stars were align and the magic was strong. Those of the Outside fear you for a reason, alas that is not a part of our bargain."

Elaine sighed and made a note to research the term before looking at the Gruff. New questions and ideas forming in her mind. "Mab has a vested interest in her son," she said and Gruff nodded in encouragement. "What can she do to protect him and to give him more power? Power he could use to defend himself."

"Craft a mantle. Such a thing would take weeks of rituals and preparations and would not be done without a blood sacrifice, but is a possibility," Gruff said and closed his eyes. "Samhain or better known to you as All Hallows' Eve would be a perfect moment for such a ritual. Stars and planets in proper alignment, the Nevernever at its peak and the Table deep in the land of Winter."

"But won't crafting another mantle unsettle the balance and make the power shift in favor of Winter? Giving even more assets and power to Mab's court."

"Not necessarily," the Gruff said and then his piercing eyes bore into hers. "Remember, young one, that mantles are made as the Queens need them. However such a deed is unlikely, Mab is not an insane being and doesn't want to feed the fires between the Courts. She will do what she thinks is needed, but won't go to such an extreme."

Elaine let out a sigh of relief and then got up. Bowing to the Eldest Gruff. "Thank you for your advise, the Eldest," she said and then retreated out of the tent. The moment she was out she found Fix looking at her.

"Do you have whatever you need?" he asked, his hand resting on the pommel of his sword. His form was relaxed, yet she could see the limp he was trying to hide. That dagger must have hurt him.

"Yes," she said, her eyes gleaming. "Not as much as I wished for. But enough to know where to look next."

"And where that is?"

"The Court of the Erlking," she said and saw Fix look at her in worry. "Lord Herne the Hunter is an ally of Winter, but also one that owes some favors to our lady. He ought to know what is happening at the court of Arctis Tor and at the same time not be wanting to throw us into a dungeon or kill."

"He is a dangerous being," Fix warned. "Not a kind of being I can defeat, especially not in his realm. If we get in troubles, I won't pull us out."

"I know," Elaine said and sighed. "But this or going into the land of Winter and sneaking into the Tor? With all of the myriad spies and assassins Mab has on her payroll following us? I prefer to Deal with the goblins and elves. At least they can be reasoned with. Mab, less so."

Fix conceded the point and fell silent. Following her towards a glade where she should be able to open a portal to where they needed to go.

o-0-o

Daphne Greengrass was an unremarkable second year member of the Slytherin house, or at least everybody assumed that she was unremarkable. Those more in the know were aware of the fact that she was a person that was as far from unremarkable as possible. It was true that she was a member of the house snake, but she was also an agent of Lara Raith.

One of the two agents of the Raith's. Second was Blaise Zabini, member of the same house and of the same year. The work for the White Court was relatively safe and came with high rewards. Rewards her foolish dad was unaware of, as he was unaware of so much more.

The hefty amounts of money that each month appeared in a private vault, she only knew how to access were one thing. Access to the perks that any higher ranking member of the Raith household could have was another and a very pleasant one.

She shook her head and banished those distractions before looking at Hermione. That bushy girl was smart and dangerous given time. Very dangerous. She was not from a family with traditions and honor.

She was new to the world and her view of many things wasn't biased and more importantly she wasn't scary of using her brain. A trait that now greatly annoyed Daphne. Almost whole student body was unaware of where Harry Potter really was or who was his mother.

A state the House of Raith wanted maintained. The Red Court didn't need to know much, nor did it need to discover this particular tidbit of information. Daphne suspected who was a spy of the Reds and Blaise agreed with her on that. If the agent of Reds was from a different house than Hermione it would be all fine, but no. He needed to be in her year.

"That can get troublesome, really fast," Daphne murmured, sipping her pumpkin juice and looking at Blaise. "I didn't have an opportunity to take a good look at what she was researching, but I'm sure it was related to Lord Herne."

Blaise paled before his self-control won and the he swallowed. "And from Lord Herne leap to Queen of Air and Darkness is not a big one."

"Quite so," Daphne smiled, her expression warm and charming. "What did she tell you about what we should do?"

"Don't act unless forced to," Blaise said and then a frown of worry flickered across his dark skin. "She also wants to keep an eye on the Reds."

"Can you charm your way into Hermione's friends?" Daphne asked and seeing him arch his eyebrow, she shrugged, looking across the whole of the Great Hall. The loud and joyous atmosphere was surprising, considering the events from just few weeks and the exams starting in a day. "We need her discouraged or directed away from the troublesome ideas she can come up with."

"I could," Blaise said and winced. "If she had any interest in any kind of a relationship or friendship. Alas, I doubt she's interested in anything beyond her precious books and sucking up to the professors."

"Poison time then," Daphne said and saw Blaise smirk. His mother was known as a Black Widow and had a reputation not many wanted to test. Not to mention that she was a high-ranking member of the Raith Household, she was not a vampire, but in the inner circle of the ruling branch. "We have two choices. Hermione or our pet spy."

"Her poisoned would make people ask questions," Blaise said and sighed. "As much as I would love to poison her because she's a predictable and easy target... It is a bad idea. Really bad."

"So prim and proper that she has no jealous boyfriend or lovers. No real quarrel with Snape. Nothing."

Blaise smiled, his smile predatory before hiding it behind a goblet with pumpkin juice. "Quite so, while Dean Thomas is a person that's disliked by Snape. Snape who will be more than willing to play to Lara's tune. After all he knows what protects his head from being severed by a sword of a Warden."

"Lara's money and his relative usefulness to her cause," Daphne said and hurriedly finished her lunch. "Approach Professor and ask him if he couldn't arrange for Mr Thomas to suffer an accident in class. Nothing permanent, but few weeks of recovery time."

She then got up and joined the stream of students flowing out of the hall and towards their classrooms.

o-0-o

Aurora sighed as she looked at the frozen form of her lover. She was worried that he would not recover and that he would forever remain in this form. No matter how much she pretended that what she was doing was an assignment from Mab, one she needed to carry out, she started to feel emotions towards him.

Emotions more refined and powerful than simple lust and hunger. She was growing attached to him and no matter how much he irritated her at times with his crass attitude and lack of knowledge she liked him. He was not she dreamed of, but there was something special in him and he was friendly, talkative and blunt. A thing that was so much different from the usual sidhe that she found it extremely pleasant.

"He will recover soon," someone said, when she looked in the direction of the voice she saw Obsydian walk towards her. His trademark massive sword slung across his back and helmet hanging from his belt. "I spoke with Lady Sarissa and she said that his spirit is fighting the parasite."

Aurora got up from the cot and then approached Syd. "I know," she whispered, placing her head against his broad chest, some tears appearing in the corners of her eyes. "I know, brother, just I'm worried. Worried that he won't wake up."

Syd placed his hand on her back and held her close. "Give him time," he murmured. "Harry is strong and stubborn. All he needs is time and will. First he has plenty of, second he has even more of."

Aurora smiled weakly, letting her emotions show as she softly sobbed. Her tears rushing down her cheeks and then Syd's armor. "I want him now," she sobbed. "Not some time in the future."

Syd smiled and embraced her, letting her release her emotions as he kept her safe. "I know, I know, sister."

o-0-o

Harry groaned as he finally shoved whatever that was aside and regained control over his body. Being frozen in an ice cage, his movements wholly restricted, unable to even blink was painful and frustrating beyond any imagination.

But the very same frustration and irritation he had was a thing he channeled towards shoving the parasite out of his body. He previously thought that he knew his limits, but when faced with the abomination wanting his body his resolve and power grew and he banished it.

The ice trapping him was an issue and the biggest one. However as he was about to flex his magical muscles and smash it aside Sarissa entered the room and seeing his magic flaring approached him.

"It's alright, Harry," she whispered in soothing voice, her hands moving into the ice and unmaking the magic holding it. The moment he was freed his whole body shuddered as he flexed and stretched his muscles. "We trapped you in ice to give you the power to kill it," she murmured and smiled. Her hand touching his scar, a trickle of blood flowing from it. "You did it."

Harry smiled and let out a sigh of relief. "For a moment I felt as if I would be unable to do it."

"But you did it," Sarissa said and smiled. "Rest and once you wake up, Aurora will want to see you. She was quite worried for you."

Harry nodded and the moment he rested his head against the pillow he was fast asleep.

o-0-o

A/N:

Reviews:

KX – that is a very fair point and under normal circumstances they would have scoured the area for any such bits. But here they were in hurry. Beating Fix or at least making him go away means that Gruffs would come next and that's a thing they wouldn't like to face. Especially the Eldest Gruff, he is a guy that killed several Senior Council members and that means power.

Calculated risk is better than staying for some time and getting caught with pants down. Hair and blood mean a lot of bad things for Harry, but he is also one of those few beings that can survive some meaner spells done with it. If he was a mortal, he would have been screwed, but Fae can do a bit more and you would need to be backed into a corner to target him. Remember, Mab is watching and her memory is long.