I own neither Harry Potter or Warcraft. Dragon OCs are listed at the bottom of the chapter if anyone loses track of them.

A note: After this fic is completed, I plan to immediately go back and edit the entire work. I've had some reviews that were less than positive, but I do read and consider them. Like I've mentioned before, this is my first real fic. It isn't going to be a masterpiece like Embers by Vathra or anywhere near as polished without another look after I improve my writing ability. I'm trying to grow as a writer, and I'll take any criticism that remains constructive, harsh or not.

Chapter five was certainly a mess, I won't be doing that again. Focusing in on certain characters, keeping others relevant but not in the spotlight is also something I'm working on, hopefully the next few chapters will be better on that front. It seems like my drakes are pulling too much focus, and my original plan had focus on entirely different ones. Eh, something to work on for the future.

So, going forward I'm going to work on putting out a better story. When I'm done and I can look back (Whether that's in another 100k words or 500k.) I intend to 're-shape' the parts that need it. I'm honestly not sure what I'll do with Chapter 5, at the time I was hoping to get the backstories for the characters out of the way while establishing them and their places going forward. I was also hoping to provide information regarding the Warcraft setting for those who aren't familiar. After reading 'A Dead World' by Laluzi, with no knowledge of either setting and being able to follow and enjoy a well-written fic with almost no knowledge of either world, that became my goal for crossovers.

Thank you all for reading. Thank you especially to those that choose to review and repay my efforts in writing with help to improve future writing. I am deeply grateful to everyone who is enjoying this, and those who've told me where the problems are. To you, here's chapter 13, which has been vastly edited from the earlier versions.

Chapter 13: Roundtable

Life was strange for Draco Malfoy today. Less than forty-eight hours ago, he found himself encased in a block of ice when he challenged a new student with admittedly near lethal curses. Then, he had watched through a slightly blurry lens as his Head of House mentally assaulted the same student, who left to find a healer after advising all of Slytherin House to guard the block of ice containing him, lest someone alter it and kill him. Though unable to see or hear all of the confrontation with the Headmaster, he truly began to panic when all around him, students began to collapse, stunned.

Then the Headmaster had examined the block of ice and said, to Draco himself apparently, how awful it was to lose a student so young before they had redeemed themselves. That was a good enough reason to truly panic in his opinion. Then spells started and he could no longer hear or see outside, and his mind spent the next few hours deep in panic, rather certain he was about to die. Then, he didn't. Salonar managed to break the magic the Headmaster had layered on top of the ice stasis spell and soon after the ice exploded outwards and he was free.

Salonar had apologized for a wand-measuring contest that got out of hand. Draco had believed his tale of the spell being used when fights got out of hand, being forced to look at another block of ice with an opponent inside for hours would give pause to future conflicts. To be honest, he was so glad to be alive he didn't even mind the hit his reputation had taken among his fellow Slytherins. Salonar was clearly a powerful wizard, the way he'd come close to ending Dumbledore was proof. And it had been close, if not for the Headmaster's hidden animagus form, he would have been killed.

Potter, as much as it burned him to admit it, had proven his power as well. It was shameful what Dumbledore had done to such a powerful magical, not the least allowing him to be beaten by muggles and worked like a house elf. When Potter had forgotten about the rest of the room and screamed at the Headmaster about having to steal bread just to keep his strength up for the next day… Well, it was no wonder he had been so uncultured. If the Headmaster, who his father had informed him had gone to many lengths to secure his place as Potter's guardian, had been so hellbent on keeping Potter uninformed and weak… Hell, even the choice of sending the groundskeeper to introduce him to the magical world was a massive insult, showing the boy he didn't deserve a Professor or even someone intelligent.

Looking around the common room, Draco had a sense that events were in flux. Everyone was shaken badly by the events of yesterday morning. He smirked at the day's Prophet. Yesterday, the leading story was written by Rita Skeeter, returning to prominence. Salonar, and it must have been Salonar, had sent her a memory of the attack by Professor Snape, along with what must have been advice. Obviously, someone had gotten a hold of her and trapped her into an oath or contract that prevented her spewing her lies. Everything in the article on Snape was true, but presented in the worst way to destroy him.

There had also been a short special edition last night around dinner, spreading the word that Dumbledore had snapped and gone insane, attempting to murder the school when his mental modifications were discovered. It promised a much larger than normal edition today, and they had delivered. Draco would bet his family's manor that Potter or one of his friends had made a deal with the Prophet, probably either for memories or interviews, because everything written about the boy was either positive or true. And the photos were truly stunning; they were taken from pensieve memories and captured much of the horror and drama of the battle.

Potter took up much of the coverage, but in this case Draco could say he'd earned it. He wouldn't be caught dead next to Dumbledore exchanging spell fire. Some of the best photos were Potter throwing away his old wand and drawing a new one with tears in his eyes at the betrayal, Potter pausing in his duel to redirect all the snakes and down two of the Heads as if it was nothing, and Salonar throwing his scythe as it leaked frost on the floor before his friends had gotten out of the way.

A Photo of Hufflepuff's new animagus and Potter destroying the Fiendfyre bomb had featured prominently as well. Draco shuddered. At least the photos didn't come with sound; listening to Elsington scream as he weakened the cursed flames once had been enough. A side article had featured Harry Potter leaning against the ice holding Granger with tears in his eyes, the article speculating wildly about what the Headmaster had done to the girl. Draco didn't want to imagine what could be wrong with her head; Dumbledore had apparently weighed his decisions on if he was likely or not to get caught, that meant he was free to do what he wanted with muggleborn students.

Draco's father had asked him to befriend Salonar, to learn what he could. He was already planning to do that, it seemed only wise. A request to attempt to sway Potter to their side was unexpected, but after that display Draco could see why. When his father suggested that several ailing family lines could be rejuvenated if their Lord was willing, Draco had to admit his father had a point. There was belief in the general supremacy of the pure-blooded and then there was ignoring your own eyes. The Dark Lord had never sired a child as far as they knew, likely having sacrificed his fertility at some point.

Breakfast had been something of an odd affair, the menu was limited, consisting of a lot more fruit than usual and foods like pancakes and waffles prepared under the watchful eyes of a number of prefects. It hadn't been bad really.

Draco glanced over to Jason Atreides, the seventh year that had been working with Salonar last night. No students had seen the group after four in the afternoon yesterday, when they'd disappeared into an unknown secret passage in the Ravenclaw area of the castle. Atreides reported that between the four of them, they had locked Dumbledore out of the castle. That was rather impressive, Draco wasn't even sure how they could have done that.

Atreides also told him that Salonar was finishing up a few more tasks, but wanted to speak with Draco at the first opportunity, probably just before lunch. This was about the best opportunity he would get to befriend the new student and begin learning his secrets. No matter how hard Draco had pressed the student whose family line bore a long and interesting history (They had actually been fully muggle in the days of ancient Greece, then they started marrying witches into their lines until they were magical for the next thousand years, then their magic died out, but eventually blazed forth again around the founding of Hogwarts. Their family tended towards warding specialists and stonemasons.) he would only say that Salonar had plans, and that Draco would likely approve of them.

Looking at a clock, he saw that it was nearing when Salonar would walk into the room. If nothing else, this should be interesting.

'Aurogon Salonar' did walk into the room soon after, and he smiled and gave a respectful nod of his head to many in the house as he walked towards Draco.

"Mr. Malfoy, I would like to speak with you if you have a moment." When Draco stepped up and shook his hand, the drake smiled. He wasn't expecting much from the spoiled child, but it seemed the last few days did have an impact after all. "Would you mind putting up a privacy ward? I have an offer for you and your father."

Five minutes later Aurogon was excusing himself, saying that he had to check up on his friends and let Granger out of the ice, arranging with Draco to meet his father in the school's entryway at three-thirty that afternoon. Though tempted to visit his lovely Dragonsworn that the wards told him were still where he had left them, Aurogon cast an invisibility spell on himself when he reached an empty hallway and returned to the Chamber. If there was no better option with Hermione, perhaps he had an idea. It might be uncomfortable for her at first, but it would be a better option than letting her mind be at the whim of the previous Headmaster.

While those in the Chamber were dismayed that the strongest purging potion they had brewed, while effective in removing the potion induced trust of Dumbledore from the Weasleys, (But sadly not all of the warm feelings associated with him. Indeed, most of the use of the potions wasn't for the immediate effect but the indoctrination they caused that could last for a lifetime.) did nothing for Harry. Thankfully Alira had reported to the group that her technique continued to drain the foreign substances out of her Lord, and had started performing it twice per day.

Fred and George found themselves decidedly curious about Harry's blushes and stuttering every time it was mentioned. A new runic pattern in the ceiling had begun bringing actual sunlight into the central space of the Chamber of Secrets, and between the students and dragons, planters of various medicinal herbs and shrubs had begun to take root.

Even Ron and Ginny, when she returned, had to admit the Chamber was much improved now, though the giant snake which was slowly being harvested down to its skeleton was a reminder of the past. When Ron had asked what they would be doing with the bones, the answer was somewhat concerning. Apparently necromancy is for the lazy who can't be bothered to properly carve the many necessary runes into bones for magical guardians.

For Dalistraza and Senastrasz though, the new day found them beginning to flag. Keeping Ralion alive was taking more energy than they expected. When Aurogos returned to the Chamber, looking less burdened than he had been in all the time those present had known him (It was a subtle difference, but noticeable if one knows draconic body language well enough. It was in the way he carried his wings, how his tail was a little higher off the ground than before. There was an obvious clue as to why for those with a predator's sense of smell.) a meeting was called around the large oak dining table.

Harry was at the head of the table as the drakes were trying to ease him into a leadership role. When Dalistraza admitted that without help, they would lose Ralion to exhaustion, Harry felt a return of that feeling he had experienced when Ralion had screamed whilst battling against the Fiendfyre. "What do we need to keep him alive? For that matter, what precisely is wrong with him? I thought his flames destroyed magical effects like that locket, was the spell fighting back somehow?"

Because Ralion was stable for the moment, Vespiona took the second question first. "My Lord, the Twilight Dragonflight was created to be a weapon, we were first made by draining another new species of dragon called Nether, or the Netherwing. Twilight dragons like us have a, a vampiric ability to drain life force or magic from creatures, objects, or spells. Our flames take some of our enemy's strength and it becomes our own. Remember when he destroyed the locket Ralion said that it was a larger meal than he expected? That's because it was literally a meal for him.

"But there is a danger to this ability. Our flames feed us, but our flesh can only hold so much power before it kills us. In the Twilight Highlands, my brother and I saw a Red wyrm brought down by a single Twilight drake through skill and speed. He killed the Red, but then died screaming as his flames forced more power into him than his form could survive. Valistraza would likely be willing to help him, she was close enough with Tendrion that I would bet that if she wasn't already carrying eggs, she'd be carrying his offspring now."

"Alright, do our healers believe they can keep him alive with Valistraza's help?"

Dali responded this time, speaking for both healers present. "Yes my Lord. Our magic is forcing his body to accept the power, forcing his flesh to adapt. Alira's forced him to sleep, otherwise he would be in agony as he got used to it. With a full grown dragon, wyrm or not, we can keep him alive. The only issue would be having enough food around, there are a lot of whelps in stasis."

With a look from his Lord, Aurogos returned to his mortal form, prompting all the other dragons to do the same. While he had the loyalty of the castle's elves so far, he wasn't willing to take chances if he could help it, and he was cautious about what they might reveal without meaning to. After calling for the house elf in charge of all the others, he introduced himself as the new Headmaster, even though the elf already knew him as Dumbledore's replacement. When the elf had introduced himself as Belin, Aurogon asked where the elves got the food for the castle. It was something that most students, even most of the staff rarely thought about. Finding out all of the vegetables and meat was entirely grown here, in a greatly expanded wing of the castle, usually accessible only to the castle's elves was a surprise.

"Belin, I want you to begin serving less meat to the students, without affecting the nutrition. I want you to retain hearts and livers and some of the bones, and I want the farm to begin producing as much meat as possible. We have some future students coming soon, and they need a lot of meat in their diets. If you can do this without breaking the Statute of Secrecy, I want you to send some elves to the muggle world and learn about new farming techniques, then implement any that would increase the production of food or allow the elves to work less.

"Don't worry, I will have plenty of work for them, perhaps too much in fact. I would also like you to assign several elves to collect as much silver as possible from the castle. Don't steal from the students or staff, but I'm sure in a castle this size there's junk that's piled up. I am maintaining the seal on the Headmasters office for the time being, I suspect he left dangerous things there. Also, Professor Snape is suspected of stealing from the castle in addition to assaulting students and being a poor teacher. Is there an elf that can collect everything he owns so we can ensure none of it is stolen?"

"Yes, Blue Headmaster. Stealy was a very bad elf before he came to Hogwarts, but he can do what you need. Where's you want silvers put?"

"In this Chamber, off to the side. Is there anything you need from me? No? Then go about your orders and remember that I am relying on the Castle's elves."

"How long will the meat we have from the Basilisk last once we open that sphere?" Harry kept the meeting moving along, he suspected he already knew why Aurogos wanted the silver, but he would deal with that after a few other matters.

Here Alira spoke up, as the most knowledgeable on the subject. "At least a full week, perhaps three. Whelps will require more food at some developmental stages, and less at others. I believe we can make use of the forest around the castle as well. Though a healthy forest can only allow so much game to be removed, if we decrease the numbers of predators and I work a little magic around the sources of salt and water we can increase the growth rate of what we need and have a significant amount of meat in the long term. I'm not sure if we can feed seventy-eight whelps with the forest or not, it depends how the animals are doing really."

Ron cut in then, wanting to make himself useful. "Hagrid seemed to always have something from the forest hanging in his hut. There's a decent amount of game out there, but for predators the biggest problem is probably the Acromantula, giant spiders bigger than you guys. Hagrid thinks they're wonderful, friendly creatures, but they still tried to eat Harry and I back in second year. The old spider that rules the colony keeps his children from attacking Hagrid or the school directly but when Harry and I tried talking to them to prove Hagrid's innocence, they still tried to eat us. They're smart enough to speak, and there's hundreds of them. And… the old spider isn't doing so great, he probably won't be around much longer."

Aurogos, in his natural form, groaned and let his head rest on the table. "What kind of idiot leaves a menace like that next to a school? Did Hagrid introduce them to a new area here, where there's apparently nothing to stop them from breeding out of control? Even I know that for an ecosystem to be healthy it needs to have balance. If you put a fast breeding predator like that in and do nothing to stop their spread, eventually they eat all the game and get hungry enough to go after things they shouldn't. Fuck, I'll organize something."

Looking around the table he saw the humans seemed to understand that something really ought to be done. "I don't usually kill things if I can help it, but the fact that these things wanted to eat students that had wandered into the forest can't be ignored. Is there anything else in there that might be dangerous?"

This led to a short discussion of the creatures seen in the forest, and oddly all eight dragons present scoffed when 'peaceful centaurs' were mentioned. Stine, not having had anything to say, spoke up here. "We have centaurs on Azeroth, but they're a fairly new species. For a thousand years Kalimdor's been plagued with them. They're a race that seems to only exist to kill, pillage, and burn. They don't really craft anything but simple weapons and armor, they don't farm. They're the offspring of an earth elemental and Zaetar, the son of Cenarius, and the very first act of their forbears was to murder their father. If the ones here are friendly, they are a completely different creature from the ones on Azeroth. Ours are cannibals, and if you ever encounter them, don't look too closely at their tents, you don't want to know what the leather is made out of."

Aurogos broke in again. "I can free Hermione at any time. I froze her in a complete stasis spell because Dumbledore was activating a magical trigger of some kind, I recommend that only Harry and Alira be there when she wakes up. Also be prepared to restrain her and take her wand away; while Dumbledore didn't have the chance to issue new commands, we don't know what old commands she might or might not be bound to obey. Alira, I have an idea for a last resort to help her, something the Blues created in the past; you can figure out if it is needed. Everyone be ready to stun her if she does something she'd regret." Harry broke up the meeting then, though he asked to speak to Aurogos for a moment and the Blue drake asked if Alira could join them, having a fair idea what this would be about.

"Aurogos," Here, Harry looked right at him, trying to pin the drake with his gaze. "I only want to bind the whelps that need it. I do not desire power over others."

Alira surprised all present when she spoke up, stepping forward until her head lay in Harry's lap after nuzzling him for a moment. "I know my Lord, but that is part of what makes you the best one to have that power. We haven't mentioned it much, the magic called the Flight Bond, but it is very important to us. You've heard of how it has gone wrong with the Blacks, how it made the Blues march to a pointless war and how it brought the Reds under the control of monsters."

"But, there's something we haven't shared with you, as we've been talking amongst ourselves to understand it first. Please understand that none of us are naturally evolved creatures, we were uplifted, empowered. Part of the gift from those that changed us was a deep need to be part of something, part of a greater whole. The Titans bound us together with the rest of our Flights. My lord, when we came here, when we accepted your Lordship over us, your ownership over us, the Flight Bond was shattered and we got something new. We all agree that service under a good man is far superior to devotion to distant gods."

Harry started to object, but Alira silenced him by bringing the tip of her wing to his lips. "My Lord, after twenty thousand years, we are what we are. Your bond is better than what I had with my Flight, I know you truly care about every one of us, not just a nebulous unending duty. When those whelps are free, they will need a bond to keep them sane, to prevent terror and panic and possibly death. When Valistraza lays her eggs and they hatch, they will need you as well. The Black and Twilight whelps will need the comfort and purpose of your bond, remember that the first act for many of them was to kill their weaker siblings. I have no idea what the Chromatic whelps will need, but I've never heard of a healthy, stable Chromatic dragon."

Aurogos chimed in then, having first-hand knowledge of the outlier whelps, the dragons that didn't have a true Dragonflight and Aspect. "Even the Storm Drakes require something to serve, though they are much freer than the five Flights that were placed under the leadership of an Aspect. I've met some of them, they share an island with Senegos and his brood, and they mostly serve the Titan's 'Keepers,' making them servant's servants. My Lord, they will need you as well, though they may argue at first.

"After getting to know you better, I regret some of my words when we met. You have not been a disappointment Harry. I wasn't planning to become the Headmaster of this school but I find myself happier than I've been since before the Nexus War. My service to you has been nowhere near as arduous as I expected from my experiences with other mortal users of magic. Another could offer me the title of Aspect of the Blue Flight, dominion over the other Flights as the King of all Dragons, and I would still choose to stay as your oathsworn, Harry Potter.

"I felt your magic when Ralion faltered, I felt your steel, your rage, the guilt that something was hurting him and hadn't gone through you first. I choose service to you over Norgannon or any other uncaring god. Harry Potter, my Lord, we are yours. By the intervention of gods, chance, or fate we have found what we need right here."

With that, both bowed in their natural forms, exposing their necks and wings in a gesture that was both submission and trust. Harry Potter, a boy that once lived in a cupboard wasn't really sure how to process the newest turns his life had taken. A lot of effort by the Dursleys and later Dumbledore had gone into making him feel as useless, as unworthy, as small as possible. The teen could begin to see that now. He didn't really know what he needed to do to heal, but he had healers of vastly different disciplines willing and eager to help him now.

Harry had not only friends, but willing servants that believed in him. People believing in him… It was a nice feeling to be honest. "If you say I need to bond the whelps, I will. I'm still uncomfortable with all of this, I don't feel worthy, but I can see how much effort went into keeping me downtrodden now. I want to, I will heal and grow stronger. I want you to help me as you see fit, I'm not even really sure what I need yet."

To himself, Harry Potter made a promise: I will not fail the trust placed in me. I will not fail my friends, those who depend on me, or my family.

With that, the group moved to the block of ice which held Hermione Granger. Carefully, the Weasley twins had moved it into a side room with a door after the meeting broke up. When Ron went to follow Harry in, Senas reached out. "Mr. Weasley, I find myself in need of help to forge some silver. Would you like an introductory lesson in magical blacksmithing? Your brothers are still working on potions with Healer Tonks, but Ted has agreed to help us with the molds." Ron, having felt as off his game as anyone else after yesterday, made a spur of the moment decision that yes, he would like to learn something about magical blacksmithing.

In another side room, Ron followed the Red drake, now wearing a human form, with the exception of his ears, in and glanced around. There was a fair bit of rune work around the walls and ceiling, and the house elf Dobby was popping in with large loads of silver objects. Is that every silver sickle ever lost in a Hogwarts couch? "There's a lot of sickle coins in there, they have magical protections on them, they won't melt down."

Senas gave him a wide smile as Ted Tonks, followed by Talion entered the room and closed the door, apparently activating an enchantment that sent a fresh breeze lazily drifting through the room. "Ah my friend with the best color of hair, but does that protection work against a dragon's flames? If not mine or Talion's, we'll call in Vespiona or Caliona, their fires will do what ours can't. I'm about magically tapped out right now, I charged the rune for Ralion as best I could, but even without using active magic to grant an effect my flames have magical properties.

"We're probably going to teach some of the students here to forge magical weapons, but very few of you will get to work with a dragon's fire. If you get good enough at this, there's a special kind of weapon you can craft, that requires the blood and flames from a dragon. We're sending a request with Hedwig for the smithing plans, actually. But for now we're going to be keeping this simple.

"Ted, can you start by transfiguring a goblet, sized for a small child? First we make the molds, then we'll break out my smithing tools. We need a total of seventy-nine goblets, most of them will be small, the last one will be sized for an adult dragon. Dobby! Thank you, that's enough for now, I'll call for you when I need more. Not bad Ted, but make it a little smaller and more rounded, it doesn't need to hold that much."

When Ted's third attempt proved good enough, Senas started retrieving his supplies from his personal expanded bag. "Here's the first lesson that applies to smithing and magical smithing both: Your work will never be perfect, no matter what it could always be better. Learning to recognize the difference between 'good enough to use' and 'melt it down and try again' is painful both ways. Accepting your 'masterpiece' that you've sweat and bled into isn't as good as it could be hurts just as much as knowing your best effort is only useful as scrap.

"Now, we have my smelting supplies here, and a lot of various silver items, thankfully the hardworking elves have stripped off anything not silver already or we'd need to do it. But first, I'm going to show you how to build a mold. Since this item is small, we're going to have multiple items in the same mold, Ted can you make me six more cups like this? They don't need ornamentation, but depict dragons if you're feeling artsy.

"Now I've heard Hermione talk about magical numbers, but I didn't pay much attention until Aurogos said there actually are some numbers where equations and spells balanced in odd ways. So for this project, we're going to craft the goblets in sets of seven. When you're trying to make a truly magical weapon or piece of armor, a common strategy is to attack the issue from all sides, to use as many ways to infuse the metal as you can. You know that scythe Aurogos used in the Great Hall? He crafted it with ice elemental cores, frost oil, adorned it with the bones of a predator that thrives in ice, and where it touched water in the forging process, it touched water that had been frozen at one of the most magical places in our old world for millennia.

"Today's goal is just goblets for the ritual that binds us to Harry, but it remains good practice. Practice the basics enough and they become instinct, and then you can start to get fancy. It's hard to be a true master of the forge, and if a blacksmith ever tells you they know everything there is to know, then they're full of shit.

"Okay, you see how the items are just off the bottom? That's because we need the point at which the metal flows into the molds to be easily broken. Now, we're going to start with melting down the items. They don't seem to be magical in any way, just little bits of lost treasure that pile over time in a place like this. Ron, I'm going to walk you through the process of melting it down and pouring into the mold. Ted, you're here because stuff like this causes bad burns if it splashes. Talion, I heard you haven't used your breath attack much, so this is a great way to work on it. If you start to melt the forge we've thrown together you're using too much heat. Start with as small a flame as you can and work your way up."

While Ron began learning the art of the forge, Harry was standing in front of Hermione's ice block (They were guessing it was the front, in the heat of battle and having moved it several times no one was quite sure which direction the girl was facing.) behind a shield charm that also protected Alira. Aurogos was tapping his talon to the ice. When he was ready, he forced a good deal of his magic into the ice and dropped into his mortal form quickly to raise his own shield.

He could have taken cover behind his Lord as well, but the azure drake had seen how Alira looked at him. Aurogos chose to say nothing about it, his Lord deserved a good female, or several females more than he did. A great crack echoed through the room followed quickly by a spray of ice and snow. Hermione dropped to the ground, gasping for air.

Harry dropped his shield the instant the sharp slivers of ice settled; he and Alira both ran to her, and Harry held her closely as Alira checked her over. There wasn't anything wrong with her, save a soreness to her throat and lungs; a benefit to the complete stasis effect with this variation was the lack of disruption to the target's insides. As Alira pronounced Hermione to be in good health, just needing a few more moments of shallow breaths while her lungs warmed (Her lungs hadn't been frozen, but the air inside had.) Aurogos excused himself, he had a meeting to attend.

Unseen by the others, the Blue drake slipped Hermione's wand into a pocket for the time being. He would return it in a few hours unless Alira suggested otherwise.

Still sitting on the ground as the chills ran their course, Alira proved herself rather limber when she wrapped herself around both teens sitting on the floor, eventually dropping her head in Hermione's lap, which was sitting in Harry's lap now. Comfortable, the drake let her mind drift while Harry filled Hermione in on the events she missed.

The three teens relaxed for a time, Hermione began idly rubbing the base of the spine behind Alira's head as Harry held her close to him. It was a comfortable experience for the three of them. Alira found herself enjoying the closeness she experienced with both humans. If she ever came across a shrine to Elune again she would have to leave something as thanks to the goddess for sending herself and the others here. It might be premature, but after spending the time she did with Harry, she realized she felt safer under his command than that of Ysera, or Alexstrasza, or even the Titan Eonar. And in the last few months (Both in the physical world and the Dream.) she had become very fond of Harry Potter.

While Alira might be happy if Harry took her to his bed and never looked at another, she had become fond of the witch in whose lap her head rested as well. In her culture it wasn't uncommon to see a male mated to two or three females, carefully chosen over their long years of life. These groups, after they overcame the common initial problems functioned extremely well, with one individual's strengths covering for where their other mates were weak. The relationships often proved the tests of thousands of years. That was what she found herself desiring with her Lord.

Alira knew her strengths, and most of her weaknesses as well. She didn't think herself stupid, but was well aware that others were smarter. Alira knew her strengths were those that made her ideal for taking care of children and family, and giving support to others. However, she disliked conflict. She could possibly force herself to stand by Harry's side through war and political intrigue, but it would be difficult. More importantly, Alira couldn't see herself ever being good at it.

Harry and Hermione had strengths and weaknesses as well. Harry was doing well, but ten years without familial love or even companionship had stunted him emotionally. It was hard to really understand a concept that you've never experienced for yourself. Despite that, he hadn't lashed out at others in anger, though it would have been truly understandable if he had. Albus Dumbledore's plans for him had included conditioning him not to think for himself, to rely on others to do his thinking for him. Harry was overcoming his failings with the same effort and grit he put forth to protect others; though she could see it was hard for him.

Hermione, on the other hand, was brilliant. But her worst flaw was tied up in her intelligence as well. She gathered knowledge quickly but often failed to think. Hermione could desperately use help thinking both 'outside the box' and in learning logical reasoning. She also seemed to be oddly naive about human nature. (Though, the Green drake smiled to herself inside of her own thoughts, that was a euphemism from Earth. Good and evil existed in the heart of every creature that was truly alive, regardless of species. Orc or Elf, Dragon or Draenei, they all had good and evil outliers.) Though, I should reserve judgment on that until I uncover what exactly her forgotten memories hold.

In a way, it could almost be argued that laziness was a part of Hermione's problems. It was easier to write off her fellow students and focus on securing a teacher's praise. It was easier to believe what was written in books than question the author, his intentions and presented information. It was easier to accept what she was taught without questioning it. Then again, it is the job of those who care for the young to help them learn how to question the world. Hogwarts certainly didn't help her there, apparently neither did her mundane educators.

Though they all had flaws, Alira had come to believe that together the three of them could cover each other's flaws and could truly come to love each other. Unless she was very wrong, Harry and Hermione already had deep feelings of trust, friendship and perhaps love for each other. Various effects had muddled their feelings, but once their hearts and minds were their own Alira could begin work on her goal.

While she waited for Harry's command, Alira's mind drifted to the more physical aspects of such a relationship. Draconic culture really had no taboos about relationships with other sentient creatures and relationships like this were common, sometimes short flings, but often lifetime commitments. (To lifelong embarrassment, more than one dragon had found their species's innate magic allowed them to procreate with non-sentient creatures as well. They had also learned that sentience required both parents having a mind; the extinct Cloud Serpents and the Dragonhawks native to Quel'Thalas being prime examples.)

Though, sometimes an individual would be required to help maintain the Dragonflights numbers. Life expectancy was sometimes a problem, but there were ways to extend a short-lived race like humans much longer. Though never, never, was immortality given to a loved one.

(The crushing, comforting, inescapable truth of Life was that death was not an enemy. Life was not meant to last forever. There were those on Azeroth that lived forever. Alira had met one of the Bronze Dragonflight's 'Watchers' and her heart had broken for the man. He had lived ten-thousand years past every friend, foe, and kin and now there was nothing left in him but a hollowness, as if his soul had been cut out and duty poured in its place. He had walked, talked, and breathed, but the fire, the joy, even the hope of life had all snuffed out. He was dead, his spirit worn down by endless ages and seasons, yet his body still completed its tasks. It was truly disturbing that the Red Dragonflight supposedly had the seldom-to-never used power to animate the dead, yet it was Nozdormu the Bronze Aspect that was served by walking corpses.)

Alira found herself enjoying the ongoing treatments to remove the foreign substances. A gentle touch in an intimate moment, the comfort of belonging to someone worthy of both her service and trust had her wanting to throw herself at him immediately. His personal power was appealing as well. While most certainly not yet a match for the likes of a Dragon Aspect or Lady Proudmoore, Harry was growing stronger quickly. Whether it was due to the substances being removed, the healing of his body, food and water from Azeroth, the bond with the drakes, or all of the above, Harry was growing in power daily.

Fantasies of what could be, or at least the physical aspects of it flew into her head and were quickly dismissed. It was a generally known fact back home that both male and female dragons were physically compatible with mortals; in fact Harry was large enough to require careful lubrication. What wasn't well known, however, was that the sexual drive of her kind was tied into their emotions. They couldn't consciously choose to raise or lower their drive, but feelings were the trigger to start the various hormones that encouraged procreation. Alira's feelings about and for Harry had already changed her hormones.

Again trying to clear her mind, Alira recalled that Sirius's friend was out in the world right this very moment searching for a way for Harry to take a dragon's form as she would an elf's. The very vivid images that followed were much harder to banish as she saw Harry in each Flight's form taking her aside and 'establishing dominance.'

Alira's fantasy of a Netherdrake-Harry twice her size licking her neck were interrupted when her real lord tapped her neck twice. I'll just put those thoughts aside for later…

As Alira enjoyed a decidedly X-rated daydream, Harry finished getting Hermione caught up.

"As you can probably guess we're down in the Chamber again right now, I brought all the Weasley siblings and Andromeda Tonks down. She's a skilled healer and mind-healer who was part of the Black family until they kicked her out for marrying a muggleborn. Sirius just brought her back in, and her daughter too. A good portion of the Order was at Headquarters, and now they're in a safe place as they get these foul potions to purge magical effects. I'm sorry, but I thought your parents might be in danger so I had Dobby bring them to where everyone is hiding. I'm sure they'd like to hear from you, but when they got angry Sirius panicked and cast a sleeping spell on them. He still isn't doing well with people.

"Are you feeling alright? Do you need anything urgently?" When Hermione shook her head 'no,' Harry tapped Alira twice on her neck and breathed in deeply. "You're expected to feel rather sleepy apparently, don't worry about it if you start to nod off. I swear you're safe here with me."

Harry disliked what was about to happen as his eyelids grew heavy and his head began to droop along with his best friend's. The Wizengamot had passed a binding law to the effect of if a magical over sixteen years old refused to accept treatment a mind-healer was unable to force it upon them, no matter if they were obviously under compulsions and their parents approved. That law was passed while Dumbledore was High Warlock, and had apparently originally been fourteen, but was negotiated to sixteen. It left Andromeda, thanks to the oaths she'd taken to achieve Ministry certification, completely unable to help Hermione unless the compulsion to avoid mind-healers could be removed.

Harry was aware that the foreign bit of his mind that caused him to do the same was still strong, still stood unbroken. He also trusted the Green drake lulling them to sleep with a special variation of her breath attack right now. As Harry drifted off to sleep he decided that he liked having his friend and dragon pressed against him as he slept.

Ten minutes later Andromeda opened the door and checked the three sleepers. All their vitals were normal, and at a request from Alira she performed the bladder-emptying charm on all three before walking out, deciding to check on them in three hours. Alira had said this would take as long as it would take, and while she was competent, she lacked the power a full-grown dragon would have. Also as requested, she sealed the door behind her.

Walking to another door, she knocked briefly and entered despite the wave of heat assaulting her. To her shock, Andromeda saw a pile of silver sickles dissolve into a puddle after a direct breath of fire from the Black and orange dragon to cheers from all within. Apparently the ritual required a silver goblet for each individual bound under the loyal lord oath, so they were crafting a number of them.

She remembered an off-hand comment from Ted once, about the real value of gold or silver opposed to what a galleon or sickle was worth. Apparently a number of his muggle-born friends had tried to break the enchantments on the coins and failed. Well, those teens didn't have friends that could breathe magical fire it seems. With this, a lot of wealth could be made and the economy could be ruined. I'll bring it up soon, something to sit on I suppose. Should the Dark Lord gain control of England, this could cripple the economy.

Aurogon strode through the castle towards the Entrance Hall. There were still Aurors everywhere, standing around in ones and twos, as if any of them would be a match for the deposed Headmaster if he returned. He didn't think any of them had even attempted to secure the wards from control by Albus.

Aurogos had found himself corresponding by elf with Rita Skeeter, though he loathed her and those like her that could only build themselves up by tearing good people down. Oh well, he'd given her enough to ensure her agreeing to an oath and she was useful as a name that many trusted even if they shouldn't. He'd sent out a few hints, something to set her upon Dumbledore's past and continue to pile his sins high in the daylight.

He'd even promised Rita an interview that would shake the Magical world, asking her to learn enough about magical oaths so she could honestly report on the information she'd be given. Rita was sure this was a chance to speak with Harry, but in reality if she and the Prophet agreed to a contract to publish the interview on the front page, word for word as it was spoken, she and a cameraman would be visiting Sirius Black and his pensieve at the ruins of Potter Manor. It would be everything he promised of course, and would whet the people's appetites for an interview with Harry Potter.

Perhaps Rita would even get an interview with Harry if she was properly contrite going forward. He wouldn't let his name be attached to anything of course. It wouldn't be proper for a Headmaster. Of course, whether he would be a widely accepted leader of a school or a crazy person defending a castle against all comers would depend greatly on how this next meeting went. Just in case, he had a firm grip on the wards and the charms that controlled the remaining suits of armor.

Aurogos made a mental note to find out who had chosen the Hogwarts motto. He swore that the personality fragments of the Founders left inside the wardstones were distinctly amused at appointing an actual dragon Headmaster. Oh well, eventually my Lord's enemies will discover consequences for disturbing a dragon. I just hope they don't actually try to tickle me, I'm not that kind of dragon.

Though tense at first, Aurogos reflected later that Lucius had clearly been intrigued by the magics and weapon seen during the battle yesterday. The last words they had shared had summed up the exchange.

"Mr. Salonar, while it is highly irregular for a man your age to assume the Headship, I believe I will throw my support behind you for the time being. That you are assuming a mostly managerial role and leaning on those with greater knowledge speaks well of you. Of course, my support will remain dependent on the results you achieve, and not simply the dissemination of the interesting pieces of magic you have mastered."

"Of course, Mr. Malfoy. Assuming I can get some Professors back, I'm hoping to resume classes on Monday. In the meantime I intend to have the next few days filled with learning a few practical spells from the visiting Aurors and Healers. I look forward to discovering what the future holds, and my own place therein. While I enjoy pleasantries, I'm afraid I still have much to do, so if you will excuse me."

With that task taken care of, Aurogon stalked his way to the Headmaster's office. Business first, a quick look around for active magic and hidden caches, then teleport to the chamber and check on things there, a first look at the magic limiting the main wards, and then I can get my Dragonsworn working on what needs to be done. I need to get all three something to study as well, but none of the texts from Azeroth are in English. I'll have to rely on the Room to provide study material until they can learn Common. At least it's an easy tongue to pick up.

A/N: What will Severus Snape find when he returns to his house? Will he get anything back? Find out in a chapter I haven't written yet! Maybe!

Here's a list of the dragons currently on Earth:

Alira: Green Drake. Before she was drafted, she was training to be a professional mother. Alira already feels safer on Earth than she did on her home world ever since the latest war began. Sometimes she cosplays as a Night Elf. She is a proud shipper of Harry/Hermione/OC.

Aurogos: Blue Drake. Now Headmaster Aurogon Salonar of Hogwarts almost by accident and proud patron of three new Dragonsworn, Aurogos is a busy drake. His mortal form is a human with striking blue eyes and hair of different shades.

Caliona: Twilight Drake. She's really looking forward to learning proper magic, not just what her friends can figure out on their own. Her mortal form is a human with sharp, aristocratic features, black pigmented eyes, and streaks of blue in her hair.

Dalistraza: Red Drake. Currently attending Hogwarts as Dali Lothar. Every adventuring group needs a healer, and she's happy to fill the role. While generally a kind person, her healing training didn't include 'bedside manner.' If she tells you to rest, you will rest. After time spent with Andromeda Tonks, she longer requires your cooperation in your own recovery. If she wants you to have bed rest, you're not escaping unless you're a professional curse-breaker.

Ralion: Twilight Drake. At Hogwarts, his alias is Ral Elsington. He would normally be a great leader, but he's been off his game recently, adapting to getting the evil gods out of his mind. He's glad they're gone, but it still takes some getting used to. His human form has black hair, a short beard, and purple eyes. His most recent thoughts could be summed up as "Ouch," just with a lot more cursing.

Senastrasz: Red Drake. Goes by Senas Lothar sometimes. Come Monday, you can call him Professor Senastrasz, master of the Hogwarts forge. He's fairly skilled around a forge, learning what he could ever since he saw his flight's Dragonspawn breathing flame onto weapons before continuing to beat the steel into the proper shape. His second form is a High Elf with red eyes.

Stine: Bronze Drake. When he joined Harry Potter, he officially retired from life as a Time Cop on Azeroth, but it was a mostly thankless job anyway. (Long hours and job hazards aplenty.) Many Bronze Dragons know their fates ahead of time, Stine saw his and didn't like it at all. When given the chance, he chose a different path whose end he couldn't see. His alternate form is a feline centaur called a Tol'vir. Orange with black stripes, ears that suggest an elf in his ancestry and no shortage of muscles identify his second form. His Leatherworking hobby has kept him busy recently, there's a lot of magical snake to process.

Talion: Black Drake. Most certainly a follower, he was thankful for Tendrion bringing him into the group. He was actually the oldest of his group before coming to Earth, but had an especially crappy childhood. Right now he's trying to figure out the theory for raising an island with his volcano powers. "It's just sinking an island in reverse, right?" has not instilled confidence that he has any idea what he's doing. His human form bears a heavily muscled warrior's build, with black hair and burnt orange eyes.

Vespiona: Twilight Drake. Sister to Ralion, she was very close to Tendrion before they parted ways. She's in mourning for a loved one she will never see again. Her mortal form is a Draenei with blue skin and purple eyes.