DISCLAIMER; I own nothing but my own characters. All characters, settings, spells, races, etc. that are included in the HP books are property of J.K. Rowling. Any other books, movies, shows, etc. that I may mention or draw from are property of their own creators and/or designers. I will most likely draw on some of the other fanfictions I've read, so if you see your stuff here, well, it belongs to you.
A/N; Well, it has been a long time, hasn't it? I've finished the next chapters and will be uploading them once a week on Monday morning until this arc is done. Enjoy!
*HPWD*
Chapter 6; Nice Doggy!
*HPWD*
The following morning, Kalinth and Serelath strode into the Great Hall, heading straight towards the Gryffindor table. Tightly grasped in Kalinth's hand was a crumpled piece of old, dirty parchment. Despite the apparent age and filthiness of it, he held onto it like it was a lifeline, as the couple plopped themselves down across from Ron and Hermione.
Kalinth slid the parchment across to them, before reaching towards the food.
"Snuffles," Serah elaborated at Ron and Hermione's confused glances.
Her eyes widening, Hermione snatched the letter off the table and eagerly bent over it, Ron peering over her shoulder, absently pulling her bushy hair away from his face. Their eyes, if possible, got even wider as they read.
"Next week?" Ron asked incredulously. "What the bloody hell does he think he's doing coming back here now of all times?! Especially with all these Ministry blokes running about!"
"Sshh! Keep it down!" Kalinth chided him. "Yes, that was my reaction too, but it can't be helped now. He's on the move, and has warded himself for sure. We can only hope he makes it safe."
"He better." Hermione stated empathetically.
*HPWD*
The following Saturday morning, the quartette (Serelath had been allowed to stay after Dumbledore had seen how attached the couple was. Not that he could have made her leave anyways) ate breakfast in the Great Hall as normal, occasionally swiping some smaller foodstuffs for Sirius later on.
Directly afterwards, Ron and Hermione hurried down to the kitchens to ask for some heavier food, stating it was for a picnic with some friends. They came sprinting out to the Entrance Hall, Ron weighed down with a huge picnic basket filled to the brim with food – both ready-to-eat and raw ingredients – hurrying towards the two elves as they waited. They nearly skidded to stop next to Kalinth and Serah as they reached Filch and Professor McGonagall at the end of the line waiting to go to Hogsmead.
Shaking her head, McGonagall waved the four through, cracking a slight grin as Ron and Hermione gulped air like it was going out of style.
*HPWD*
Kalinth and Serelath ghosted through the town proper of Hogsmead with the ease of centuries of practice, Ron and Hermione trailing behind them like a couple of lost puppies with Ron still weighed down with the basket. Coming to the end of the main street, they clambered over the perimeter-ward fence marker. As Ron tumbled to the ground after trying to be fancy and vault the fence, they burst out into laughter. They only laughed harder as a clump of late spring snow fell directly onto his face.
Sputtering and red-faced, Ron sat up, grumbling indistinctly. Glaring at the three, his eyes widened as he caught sight of the huge shaggy dog sitting behind them, tongue lolling out of his mouth in a canine laugh.
"Ah, hey there, bud!" Kalinth exclaimed, kneeling down as reaching towards Sirius' head. As he did so, a slightly fearful expression passed over the animagus' canine face, before he shook his head and leaned into the elf's touch, tail wagging. "Why don't you show us to your home, eh? We have food for you, if you manage to get us there without getting lost!"
After a short, good-natured growl at Kalinth, Sirius turned and trotted up the hill, scampering up the rocks. Kalinth and Serah followed quite easily, leaping from rock to rock, occasionally pulling Ron or Hermione up some of the larger boulders as they ascended the mountain.
Suddenly, they saw Sirius disappear through a small crack in the mountainside. Coming up to it, Kalinth, reached out and gently tapped the stone slab that lay across the right side of the entrance. It flickered ever so slightly, indicating that it was illusion. Grinning, he ducked through the gap between the illusionary rock and the true rock of the cave, the others following along behind him.
As soon as he passed the threshold of the cave, he was swept up into the arms of his slightly insane godfather. Chuckling, Kalinth wrapped his arms around Sirius, returning the familiar hug.
"Yes, yes, good to see you too, Sirius. Now can you two break it up? This basket is heavy!"
The two of them turned to see Ron standing in the entrance to the cave with a very disgruntled expression on his face, Serah and Hermione behind him trying to hold in their laughter.
"Sorry, Ron," Kalinth said, moving farther into the cave, dragging Sirius behind him. Turning to the stormy-grey hippogryph at the back on the cave, he ignored the chatter of the others and approached the elegant creature. Before he could bow to him, Buckbeak caught sight of Kalinth and quickly bent his front knees into a deep bow. Slightly bemused, Kalinth bowed back, before they both stood. Kalinth went up to Buckbeak and gave him a few pats on the neck, before turning back to Sirius, who was already at the food they had brought. As the four friends sat around the escaped convict, they exchanged a few greetings as Sirius inhaled the food in front of him.
Finally finishing, Sirius wiped his hands and mouth with a napkin, before looking intently at Kalinth and Serah.
"Now then, it seems that a lot has happened this year that I wasn't aware of. Before we get to that, you two," here, he pointed vigorously at the pair of dragons-in-disguise sitting in front of him. "have a lot of explaining to do. I want to know why as soon as I smelled you in my dog form, I wanted to run as far and fast as I could, then run some more. I've come across some pretty powerful wizards while in my dog form, but none of them have provoked that sort of response from my instincts."
"Well, now," Serah started after a glance at her mate.
"That is a very long story," Kalinth finished with a grin.
*HPWD*
After a good two hours of non-stop talking, Kalinth and Serah had finally managed to explain everything to Sirius, with demonstrations included. Finally, Sirius leaned back.
"So let me get this straight. The kid the Potters 'found' after they lost their own child was you, who just happens to be a thousand-year-old Greater Dragon, who has been living under and around the Scottish mountains along with your mate for the past millennium?" He finished he question with a note of disbelief.
"Aye, that's about right." Kalinth confirmed.
"Well," Sirius sighed. "For some reason, I'm not surprised, even though I should be."
"Not really," Serah spoke up. Everyone looked at her curiously.
"Why not?" Sirius said, rather confused.
"He's Kalinth Aerendyl, or Harry Potter as you know him. He has never done 'normal,' and probably never will." Serah quipped.
*HPWD*
A/N; I. Hate. Slow. Chapters. Regardless of my distaste for writing these types of things, I hope you guys appreciate it! Don't worry, it'll pick up soon.
