Chapter 9

Warning: This chapter will contain profanity

Note: Dragon-speak: "speak"

…as the Horntail reared herself back to release the flames, Harry's conscious mind took a backseat as a loud noise echoed around the arena.

"Revered Mother! Calm yourself!"

Absolute silence.

All eyes stared at Harry, who was breathing hard, seemingly unaware that he just commanded the Horntail to halt her flames. The spectators watched with a myriad of emotions – fear, confusion and disbelief. The Hogwarts staff mirrored the expressions of the crowd, as did Viktor and the three members of his clique. The handlers, on the other hand, were in a state of total shock, eyes as wide as dinner plates and jaws hanging open.

The Horntail was by no means shocked. She was surprised, definitely, and highly suspicious, that this perceived enemy of hers and her precious eggs could speak her language. She had to find out who exactly is this being before her.

"You are fluent in our language, speaker. Who are you?"

Of course, this came out as growls and low roars to the crowd. There were several screams, and a couple of thuds as a few individuals fainted on the spot.

Harry's reaction was far less exaggerated, but surprise fit the bill right on target. To him, it was like the Horntail was speaking in English, almost like when he commanded that snake that Draco conjured during the duel in second-year to halt its attack on a Hufflepuff student.

"Speaker, who are you?"

Realizing the Horntail was addressing him, Harry quickly responded, "Revered Mother, I am Harry Potter."

"Speaker Harry, what are your intentions towards my young and myself?"

"I mean you and your young no harm, Revered Mother."

"And how do I know your word is trustworthy? You look no different from those humans who starved me, provoked me with those spells and ropes, and endangered the lives of my unborn young, dragging us from our home."

Here, Harry played it to his advantage, "We are both victims of these foul, despicable examples of the human race, Revered Mother. You and your young were forcibly taken from your home and made prone to anger, and I was dragged into fighting against you for the sick purpose of entertainment for these bloodthirsty fools."

The Horntail scrutinized the boy, "If I were to take your word as truth, Speaker Harry, why were you forced to fight me and endanger my young?"

Harry stared into the dragon's blazing, yellow eyes, "Right now, these humans are holding a truly dangerous event, the Tri-Wizard Tournament. People have died before in tournaments like this. I had no intention of participating, as I am not of age and I don't want an early death. But my name was put in without my consent or knowledge, and it was chosen, even when three participants had been chosen. I had no choice but to take part, lest I forfeit my magic."

Here the Horntail narrowed her eyes, but deep in his heart, Harry was certain that her outrage was not directed at him, but at the bastard who threw him into this mess into the first place.

"Revered Mother, the tournament involves three tasks. The first task, right now, involves all four participants fighting dragons and procuring a golden egg from the real ones in the shortest time and with the least injuries."

Here, Harry pointed at the golden egg sitting amidst the real ones. The Horntail flared her nostrils at the sight of the imposter sitting among her young. She would deal with it later, for now, she would let Harry finish.

"I had and have no intention of hurting you or your young, Revered Mother. I only wanted to collect the imposter egg, and get away from here. I don't want to be here as much as you do. And I understand and relate with your anger at those monsters who dragged you here. I am angry too. I am angry at those who did not aid me, or stand by me at my most vulnerable. Please believe me, Revered Mother. I am at your mercy."

To the surprise of those watching, Harry crouched down, put his wand in front of him on the rocky ground, and went down on one knee as a gesture of submission, leaving him totally vulnerable to any attack. They were even more stunned that a wizard was showing reverence to a dragon, something that was completely unheard of in magical society.

Everyone held their breath, waiting with agonizing apprehension of the outcome. The Hogwarts staff, aurors, and handlers didn't know whether to intervene or stay put. Viktor had to be held back by his three friends so that he didn't jeopardize the tense standoff that could result in Harry being killed.

As for the Horntail, she had reached her decision.

She was angry, but not at Harry. Her senses found no deceit or lies in his words. Furthermore, Harry was still a child! Dragons treated their young with the utmost care, protection and love. The fact that these despicable humans threw a child into a deadly tournament for their own sick entertainment disgusted her. This child ought to be loved, not sent to die!

The Horntail was also furious at those adult humans who contaminated her nest with that golden imposter. She wanted it gone, away from her young. Harry can take it with him, as long as it went as far away from her eggs as possible.

The Horntail returned her gaze upon Harry, "I find no deception in your words, Speaker Harry. I praise your actions. You helped me come to my senses. You are not like those foul beasts that you call humans. A beautiful diamond among the darkest of coals."

"I am honoured that you perceive me as such, Revered Mother," Harry replied humbly, "But I did it because it was the right thing to do. For even though I denounce the people who brought both of us pain, the few friends I have sitting here today are innocent. They did no wrong, so they do not deserve your ire."

"You are truly a good, noble being, Speaker Harry. Magic should reward you for your deeds today," the Horntail appeared to smile, showing her sharp teeth that pulled a few more screams from the spectators. The handlers stepped forward at the ready, only to be met by a blast of fire in their path as a warning from the mother dragon. With any disturbance quelled, she continued to Harry, "Speaker Harry, the golden imposter is yours to take. It does not belong in my nest. It is yours now."

To the surprise and shock of those watching, the Horntail lifted her tail, brought it over her nest, and gently pushed the golden egg from the pile. It bounced off the nest, and rolled towards Harry. Trembling slightly, Harry got up, and took the egg into his hands. He returned to the genial dragon, eyes shimmering with awe.

"Revered Mother, words cannot describe your kindness and thoughtfulness. If you so allow me, may I know your name?"

"Speaker Harry, you may call me Harcia."

"Very well, Harcia. I thank you most humbly for entrusting this egg to me. May you live a long, peaceful life with your young bringing you happiness and joy to you and your clan."

"You are most welcome, Speaker Harry. I wish you all the best with your completion of this vile tournament."

The crowd was once again stunned when Harcia returned Harry's bow with her own. Just as no wizard before has bowed to a dragon, no dragon in living memory has ever bowed to a wizard. The shock factor quickly went up another level, for when both dragon and human straightened up, the latter's chest began to glow a bright yellow.

Harry blinked as the glow seemed to compress into the middle of his chest, before shooting out like a comet and striking Harcia in the chest too. Frantic whispers echoed from the crowd as both human and dragon were enveloped by the yellow glow. Even the handlers were absolutely befuddled to explain the current scene, save for one with red hair tied in a ponytail, whose eyes were wide and jaw slack with disbelief.

Then, as the yellow glow faded from Harry and Harcia faded away, there was a disturbance in the crowd. Indignant shouts, squeals and verbal curses echoed as someone appeared to plough their way the throngs of people. Before Harry could do anything else, that someone dashed straight towards him and bowled him over, the golden egg flying out of his arms and landing several paces away.

Harcia did what could be the dragon-equivalent of raising one's eyebrow, eyeing the shaking figure of Viktor Krum as he literally squeezed the life out of Harry on the ground in his tightest, most desperate hug to date, with scrutinizing curiosity.

It took several moments for Harry to realize it was his Bulgarian friend who was close to suffocating him on the rocky ground.

"V-Viktor?"

"Y-You f-f-fucking bastard…"

That shut Harry up. Viktor never swore at him before.

"Huh…?"

"Vhat d-do you think y-you vere doing? Vere you trying to give me a heart attack?!"

Harry felt something moist trickle onto his shoulder.

"Viktor…a-are you crying?"

"Of fucking course I am crying!" Viktor yelled, loosening his hug enough to hover over his friend, allowing the smaller lad to see the tears running freely down his cheeks amidst an emotional, agonized expression, "I could have lost you!"

Harry raised his hands to wipe away his friend's tears, "Don't cry, Viktor. I'm fine. I even got the egg."

"So vhat?! You could have killed yourself!" Viktor shouted, pulling Harry back into the suffocating hug, "Did you know how terrified I vas, seeing you svoop down towards the dragon, jump onto her and vrestling around vith her until she took you into the air?! And then that glow, vhat the hell vas that?!"

"She was blinded by her rage, Viktor, she didn't know what she was doing. She was just trying to protect her eggs, but her fire was shooting everywhere. The handlers couldn't stop her, so I had to at least try! And I have no clue what that glow was or what it did! But it didn't kill me, at least!"

"But vhat if you did die?! How am I supposed to live vith that?! Merlin, Harry, fucking think about yourself for once!"

Having ranted all of his pent-up energy, frustration and fear out, Viktor appeared to slump slightly from the loss of adrenaline. His physical strength still kept Harry in the tight hug as he pressed his forehead into the smaller boy's neck.

"J-Just…please…p-promise me, Harry, t-that you vill…never be s-so…reckless a-again. I can't c-carry on vithout y-you."

Harry felt Viktor's tears trickle onto his robes again. Sighing, his arms wrapped around the weeping Bulgarian's broad chest, returning the hug with a reassuring squeeze.

"I'm sorry for worrying you, Viktor. I promise I won't be so reckless again…unless justified by the both of us."

Despite the slight turnaround at the end, Harry's promise satisfied and calmed Viktor's nerves, allowing him to tighten the hug to the point that oxygen really started to get cut off from Harry's lungs, not that the fourth-year was particular about that little fact yet. Harcia, though, seemed rather affected by it.

"Speaker Harry, your face is turning blue. Is this human hurting you?"

Since it was roars and growls that reached Viktor's ears, the Bulgarian seeker shot up like he had been stung by a powerful stinging hex to the arse. He was in the movement of instinctually pushing Harry behind his back and drawing his wand on the dragon, when Harry's hands grabbed his arm.

"Viktor, it's okay. Let me do the talking."

Viktor stared at Harry for a moment, and slowly relented, bringing up his empty hands to show the Horntail he was no threat. Harry speaking drove that message home.

"Harcia, this is Viktor Krum. We met in the summer, and he is a wonderful person, one that I am forever grateful for being my friend. He and his four friends stood by me when everyone abandoned me when I was chosen to participate. Viktor is a good soul, Harcia, as you described it, a diamond amidst coals."

The Horntail visibly relaxed at the assurance that this Viktor Krum was no danger to Harry. She turned to face the Bulgarian seeker, who had stiffened.

"Speaker Harry speaks highly of you, Viktor. I am pleased to hear that you were there for him all throughout this madness. You truly are a wonderful friend to Speaker Harry, and a friend of Speaker Harry's, is a friend of mine."

A confused Viktor turned to Harry, "Vhat did she say?"

Here, Harry blushed a little, "Harcia is praising you for being a good friend to me, and that you are also her friend for that."

Viktor felt like he had been hit by a bus at learning he was a friend of this terrifying dragon before him. But his manners held firm; taking a leaf from Harry's book, he bowed respectfully to Harcia, "Thank you, great dragon. I am honoured to be regarded as your friend."

Harry translated Viktor's words to the Horntail, who appeared to smile beatifically and returned the bow. Meanwhile, the press had pushed their way to the front of the crowd, and camera flashes were going off as this unprecedented event was captured for tomorrow's papers across Europe.

At the same time, Harry called for Viktor's clique to join them on the arena. The four awed Durmstrang students were introduced to Harcia, and the bonds of friendship were extended to them too. But then, Harcia's jovial aura turned defensive, and somehow, Harry knew. Turning to where the Horntail was glaring, he noticed a certain redheaded handler gingerly approaching the group, with his co-handlers staring at him as if he had gone off his rocker.

Harry stepped forward, "Hello Charlie, what is it?"

The second-eldest Weasley son seemed genuinely intimidated, which was not a trait a dragon-handler would dare show in front of any dragon, let alone a Horntail.

"May…May I have a word with you, Harry?"

Viktor stepped forward next to Harry, "Vhat is it that you vant to speak about?"

"I-I just wanted to confirm my suspicions about the yellow glow earlier."

That naturally piqued the Bulgarian seeker's interest. He too wanted to know what in Merlin's name was that yellow glow that shot out of his friend and connected him with Harcia. It was left to Harry to reassure the Horntail that Charlie was no threat to either of them. Harcia relented, but kept her gaze on Harry as he approached the redhead.

"You seem to know something about that?"

"I do, Harry, but it is described as merely a myth," Charlie explained, "You see, there is this legend that the first human and dragon to meet underwent a similar experience that you and the Horntail had earlier gone through. It was written as the first-ever soul-bond between a human and a dragon."

"A soul-bond? You mean like a familiar?" Harry asked.

"Something like that, only much deeper and intimate," Charlie clarified, "The legend continues how the human was able to experience their bonded-dragon's emotions, physical and mental states, as well as converse in the draconic language – the language of dragons. The human went on to become the first dragon-handler, passing on the knowledge to future generations. This soul-bond has been coveted by many a handler since, myself included. But it has never occurred once since the legend."

Harry looked thoughtful, "Now that you mention it, I did feel Harcia's anger had being forced here against her will and the danger posed on her young. I also felt her pain when she struck her right wing on the Astronomy tower during her rage-blinded flight. It felt like the Cruciatus curse on only my right side."

Charlie was now staring dumbfounded at Harry, as with Viktor and his clique. Harcia, who had been watching the conversation in the background quietly, made her way over to Harry, the Durmstrang students clambering out of her way. Harry calmly turned around, while Charlie stiffened, his tanned skin paling.

Harcia addressed Harry, "The redheaded human's story is no mere myth, it actually happened."

"How do you know this, Harcia?" asked Harry.

"It was my mother, who was the dragon that soul-bonded with that human many millennia ago. She told me when I was a little hatchling."

Harry raised an eyebrow in interest, "Really? What did your mother see in this human?"

"The same characteristics I see in you today. You see, Speaker Harry, this human lived by the morals of nobility, justice, and goodness. Many millennia ago, as with a good number of humans today, dragons were hunted by your kind's ancestors. But this human was not like her peers. She treasured the lives of all creatures and beasts. That day, one of her peers was about to kill my mother, when the human came to her rescue, and killed him to save her. The selfless act allowed magic to form the soul-bond between the noble human and my mother, and she went on to teach others about how to treat dragonkind with respect and love, through the knowledge shared between the her and my mother."

"That is really interesting, Harcia," Harry nodded thoughtfully, "But I am curious, was there any physical mark of this soul-bond?"

"Yes there is, Speaker Harry," the Horntail confirmed, "The soul-bond is passed from parent to hatchling. As I am her offspring, I inherited the mark, and the bond at the same time." Here, she turned to the right, and curling her wing at her right shoulder. Harry noticed that several swirls with sharp ends in a lighter grey shade stood in contrast to her black scales, formed an intricate design that reminded him of those tribal tattoos he had seen in the muggle world, "My mother told me that one day, I would find my bonded, it was just a matter of when, and who."

"So, you are saying…?" the last part of Harry's question went unsaid, but Harcia understood perfectly.

"If I am right, you should have the mark on your right shoulder too."

Harry nodded slightly, when he noticed Charlie, Viktor and his clique were staring at him with confused expressions.

Forgetting that they didn't understand their conversation, Harry switched back to English, "Long story short, Harcia confirmed Charlie's mythical tale as fact. Her mother was the dragon in the story, and she inherited the bond as her offspring. The soul-bond is identified by the mark on her shoulder," Harry pointed at the grey tattoo-like mark, "and according to her…"

Here, Harry rolled up the sleeve of his robes over his right arm. What was revealed made Charlie and the Durmstrang students gasp, which in turn got the press excited all over again.

For on Harry's right shoulder, what was once plain, blank skin now bore the exact same tattoo-like mark, though it was jet-black instead of grey.

Harcia beamed, "I was right. We now share the bond. Our souls are at one with each other."

Charlie might not be able to understand the draconic language, but it was clear to him the legend was not a mere story, it was real. The fabled and long sought-after soul-bond between human and dragon had shown itself on young Harry. It was the same Harry who reacted with surprise when he saw Charlie dropping to his knees and bowing deeply to him.

"C-Charlie? What are you doing?"

"You bear the mark of the most coveted bond between man and dragon," the redhead replied, eyes facing down, "You are elite among dragons. You have access to their ways, knowledge and secrets by bearing the mark. I can only offer you my meagre skills in the hopes that you will be generous enough to impart the ways of the dragons for me to learn."

By this stage, the crowd of onlookers, aurors and Hogwarts staff were left confused, whispering and asking one another for any hints or clues. So many things had happened in such a short span of time, no one was quite sure how to make head or tail of the current events. The press, on the other hand, had no such qualms, greedily lapping up every single moment that would make one hell of a news day tomorrow.

Harry was also left unsure how to react. It had been one thing to find yourself bonded with the world's most dangerous dragon, then to find yourself in front of a prostrating dragon-handler like as if he was Merlin himself certainly did not help matters.

Seeing her bonded's distress, Harcia stalked over to Harry.

"Harry," here the fourth-year turned, immediately noticing the drop of the 'speaker', "Do you trust this human?"

"Harcia, Charlie might only be an acquaintance at the moment, but I know he treats every dragon as if they were his own children. He would never do anything that would see a dragon hurt on purpose. His soul is good one, too."

"Then you have my blessing to impart whatever knowledge I share with you to him, at your own discretion."

Harry bowed, "Thank you, Harcia. Charlie would be over the moon."

The fourth-year returned to the redhead, who had chosen to look up, "Charlie, what are the requirements of becoming a dragon-handler? I fear my current knowledge and physical strength are not up to par with what is expected. I understand it was a rush decision, but can I trust that I could put my learning into your hands as a capable dragon-handler after I finish my education here?"

Poor Charlie looked like he was about to crumple to the ground and his soul ascend to heaven. That a dragon's bonded human had granted him his dream of learning every single scrap of knowledge dragonkind possessed was beyond his comprehension. And it wasn't like he was the only one benefitting from this. If Harry was serious about becoming a dragon-handler, things at the reserve, and maybe around the world, would no longer be the same.

It was only through sheer will that Charlie didn't botch his response with his overflowing emotions, "I will be most honoured, to be your mentor, Harry."

Harry chuckled, pulling Charlie up to his feet. Viktor approached them, "Harry, are you really serious about becoming a dragon-handler?"

"It's a very high possibility," Harry replied, "For one thing, I'm soul-bonded to a dragon, Viktor. Second, this is a new world I've been exposed to, I would like t see it for myself. And third, it's actually pretty exhilarating to fly on a dragon's back without the threat of crashing into turrets or roofs."

Viktor deadpanned Harry at that point. Klaus decided to throw in a joke, "Hey Viktor, don't tell me you are going to vrap Harry up in cushions and keep him in your trunk vith you holding the key at all times?"

"I think I vill do that, Klaus, thanks for the suggestion."

"C'mon Viktor, you wound me," Harry pouted, which stabbed Viktor right in the cuteness.

The Bulgarian seeker sighed loudly, pinching his nose, before staring Charlie down with a stern look, "Vhen Harry comes to the reserve, I expect you to vatch over him and take good care of him. If I find even one scratch on him, I'm coming after you vith my vand and a beater's bat, Mister…"

"Weasley. Charles Weasley. Don't worry, Krum, you have my word on that," the redhead promised, once again feeling intimidated by the glare boring into him.

Viktor immediately took notice of the familiar family name, "And by the vay, your youngest brother is an absolute shite-hole."

The intimidated nervousness vanished from Charlie's aura, "W-What do you mean?"

"Vhat I mean is-"

"Harry!"

At the sound of the familiar, and extremely unwelcome voice, Harry lost his entire jovial aura in a blink of eye. Harcia felt the darkening of her bonded's emotions, following Harry's line of sight to see what was the cause.

What looked like half of Gryffindor house had burst from the crowd and were now running towards them. Leading the pack, much to Harry's disgust, was Ron and Hermione, his former "friends" who turned their backs on him when his name came out of the goblet a month ago.

Harry steeled his face shut, and raised his wand warningly at the approaching traitors. Viktor and his four friends also raised their wands in solidarity with the fourth champion, effectively halting the advancing Gryffindors. Gasps echoed from the watching spectators, and the press cameras went flashing again at this new potential story.

"Whoa! Mate! Calm down will you?" Ron held his hands up.

"What do you want, Weasley?" Harry growled, Charlie noticing that something was off seeing the fourth-year address his friend of four years by his family name.

"We wanted to congratulate you Harry!" Ron beamed, seemingly forgetting the wands pointed at him, "What you did with that dragon was so awesome!"

"Really? Not going to apologize for your betrayal?"

"Huh?"

"I'm surprised you're pulling off the ignorant act. I certainly remembered a certain bad-tempered, foul-mouthed, jealous redhead rallying the entirety of the house to believe I cheated to put my name into the goblet, and then decide to exile me from Gryffindor?"

Despite not using a Sonorus charm, the silence of the arena amplified Harry's voice for all to hear. Another round of gasps travelled through the crowd. The reporters were frantically scribbling Harry's words down, eager for the potential bombshell this story would become. Charlie was staring at his youngest brother in disbelief.

"Eh…yeah…about that mate, after seeing the dragon, we realized that someone really wanted to off you by putting your name in without your knowledge," Ron tried to brush it off.

"Wow Weasley, took you that long to figure it out?" Harry sneered, glare intensifying, "So, are you going to apologize?"

"For what mate?" Ron had the audacity to act confused, "It's all in the past! I'd say let bygones be bygones. We're best mates, aren't we? We are the Golden Trio, after all."

The rest of the Gryffindors were nodding along with what Ron was saying. That made Viktor's glare turned absolutely bloodthirsty, his anger erupting like a volcano. He was about to cast another bone-breaking hex at the redhead's jaw, but Harry beat him to it with his own spell.

"The Golden Trio, is dead."

A powerful Confringo shot out of Harry's wand, striking the ground just inches from Ron's feet. The resulting explosion knocked Ron, Hermione and the front row of Gryffindors to the ground, those behind quickly stumbling back, shrieking in horror. More gasps left the stunned onlookers, the cameras flashing like crazy.

A cloud of dust and grit was kicked up, sending those caught in it coughing and wheezing. As the dust cleared, Ron stared at Harry with total shock.

"What the bloody hell?! What was that for?!"

"Shut your mouth, Weasley," Harry growled, shattering Ron's jaw with the customary bone-breaking hex.

A gurgled scream echoed painfully from the redhead, blood seeping from his mouth as he tried to hold his jaw together.

"You are completely unbelievable, Weasley," Harry snarled, stepping towards his traitorous housemates, "You didn't even apologize for your actions, and you expect things to go back to what they were before? Let me get this in your fucking skull, you fucking arsewipe, you, Granger and I, are done!"

The onlookers watched, spellbound, as Harry verbally tore his former friends apart, "You and Granger betrayed me at my most vulnerable, throwing our years of friendship away just because of your fucking jealousy and lack of brains! You, Weasley, even dared to drag my parents' memory through the wall of shite you are! If you think I can just forgive you for all that you've done, you are dead wrong, you motherfucking douchebag!"

Harry didn't care if his liberal use of profanity resulted in some onlookers fainting, he inwardly relished the flash of emotions that marred Ron's bloody face – outrage, horror, pain. The last one he exacerbated by firing a stinging hex on the redhead's shattered jaw, pulling another pain-filled scream.

"You all turned your backs on me thanks to Weasley's attitude. Now, you'll see me turn my back on you fucking arselickers. I would say it was nice knowing all of you, but I would be lying to myself. So I will say this, fuck off and die!"

Harry threw a parting shot in the raising his middle finger at the lions, those raised by muggles or understanding muggle culture recoiling at the offensive gesture.

As Harry turned away to pick up his forgotten golden egg, Fred and George stepped out of the crowd. They didn't need to intervene since Harry had no trouble destroying Ron and the Gryffindors. But they couldn't go without giving their imbecilic younger brother their own verbal bashing.

"See what you've…"

"done now, Ronniekins."

"You acting like a right dick…"

"…has come back to wallop you on your arse."

"We agree with Harry…"

"…you are a motherfucking douchebag…"

"And therefore deserve this," both twins finished, drawing their wands and simultaneously firing two more stinging hexes at their brother, one on the forehead and the other at the chest.

Leaving Ron in agony, the twins joined Charlie and the Durmstrang students, as Harry returned with his golden egg.

"Mighty good show you pulled there Harry," said Fred.

"You've got balls the size of quaffles, riding that dragon! Do you think she'll let us fly on her back too?" asked George.

"Let me clear that with Harcia," Harry grinned, turning to the Horntail and introducing the twins to her.

Once the ties of friendship were established, the small group left the Gryffindors to marinade in their shame, bringing Harcia out of the arena back to her fellow dragons, not caring about Harry's score. The crowd parted for them, cameras flashing as they went. Meanwhile, sitting innocently on the stands watching the entire proceedings, was Luna, smiling without a care in the world.

"Harry really has a lot of surprises up his sleeve. I wonder what's his next one?"

To Be Continued.

Hey everyone, here we are at the conclusion of the first task. Harry and the Horntail are soul-bonded, Harry decides his future job, and destroys his former friends and housemates. So...in a nutshell, pretty typical stuff, I guess.

A little note, dragon-speak in this story is its own unique language. A lot of other stories tie dragon-speak as a variation of Parseltongue, but I decided to be a little different. Also, Harcia's name was derived from the Hungarian word 'harcos', which means 'warrior' in English.

On a different note, I understand if this comes off as whiny or attention-seeking, but reviews and feedback mean a lot to me. They are a great motivation for me to continue writing, as they allow me to know what you guys like or dislike about a particular chapter, and your comments pertaining to the storytelling and flow, among other aspects.

Without your feedback, I'm unable to know if you are enjoying the story, and it really affects me badly. So please, if you can, leave a review to tell me where I did right and where I went wrong. I really appreciate every single one you guys send to me, so that I can continue improving and providing entertaining stories for everyone.

Special thanks to Belliska, DS2010, mizzrazz72, whiteoaks, AlbusPW, and the guest who left reviews.

- SilentGhostWriter2017