Last time...

"I'm not going to like this, am I, kid?" Tony asked, looking to Dudley, who shook his head no. "Alright then, if you'll show me her room, I'll get out of your hair. I imagine you three are going to be having a long conversation here soon. I'd planned to talk to you about a job at some point in your future, but perhaps it's better for things to calm down first. You have my personal number."

Chapter 24

The day of the first task was drawing near, and Professor Snape had been training her relentlessly. They hadn't known what to expect, what the challenge was, or what she would have to get. The first task was always to procure something through great dangers, but what that was, they hadn't been told. Earlier, Hagrid had insisted she follow him under the cloak, but wouldn't tell her what for, which was unusual for him. While she could have done without being the invisible third wheel on his 'not' date with Madam Maxime, hidden under her cloak as she was, it had certainly been an informative experience.

Lesson one, Hagrid was terrible at flirting.

Lesson two, she was going to have to face a dragon.

Her mind is fueled with panic at seeing such creatures up close, and decides leaving is the better part of valor. She taps Hagrid's left hand three times to let him know that she's leaving, and makes a quick exit. With nowhere else to go with this knowledge without it being overheard, Hera makes her way to Professor Snape's office. She has quickly learned that he is probably the most paranoid bastard on the face of the planet, so his office had to be ridiculously well warded, making sure anything said there would remain private. Hera makes it to the office in little time, her panic fueled by the fact that nothing they've done so far will cut it with a dragon.

...

He's grading papers when he feels a disturbance in the wards. They have been keyed to allow Potter entry. As his apprentice, she would need that. The door flings open with no one there though, and Severus' reacts with casting a body binding curse where the person should have been, frowning when it hits nothing. Potter appears just inches in front of where the curse had flown through the air, invisibility cloak in hand, face ashen as she hyperventilates. He's about to prompt her to find out what's wrong, seeing as how she's shaking with fear in his office, when she manages a single word.

"Dragons."

"Maybe…if we dress you up in dragonhide everything, and you talk to it, they'll think you're just…an early hatch or something." Ron managed to get out, through laboured breaths.

They were all in this sort of pile of groaning bodies on the floor of an old classroom Snape had appropriated for her training. Though Ron hadn't followed her into Slytherin, he hadn't let the change in House destroy their friendship, something Snape seemed to both tolerate and be confused by with equal measure. Ron and Draco had even come to some sort of weird truce, which pretty much amounted to them insulting each other like always, just without the anger behind it; it was actually turning into quite the contest. Draco was currently leaned up against Hera and Ron, protesting his abused muscles. Hermione groaned in commiseration from the other side of them, the two far past the point where they could even hold whatever grudge they had with each other; her transition into the House of Slytherin had been much easier than anticipated, something she was secretly surprised about, but happy for nonetheless.

Draco tenses, and then manages. "…What?"

"Ronald, surely that won't work." Hermione huffed in tiredness. "Norbert was a baby. These are fully grown dragons…Would they even listen to her?"

"Dunno…Charlie is still chomping at the bit to get her for the Reserve." Ron shrugged as much as he was able. "So…maybe?"

"You can talk to dragons?" Draco asked, his voice sounding strangled.

"Dragons are just big serpents with wings…Snakes are cousins of serpents." Hera explained, still leaning against him. "Point is, yes…I can talk to dragons."

"That's never been tested!" Draco insisted, sitting up and turning around to face them. Hera barely managed to save herself from sprawling backwards onto the floor, slumping against Hermione and Ron as she clung to them in an effort to stay upright.

"About that…Hagrid hatched a dragon in First Year, and it was able to understand me." Hera informed him. "So…it's been tested. I just don't know if it will work on an adult dragon."

"And just when were you going to tell me about this, Potter?" Snape drawled, leaning against the wall. The unspoken demand was clear.

"Uh…when I stopped panicking?" Hera ventured, to which he nodded in understanding. They had both been panicking, to be fair. "Do you really think that would work? It's flashy. It's impractical. It's-"

"It's so 'in your face' you have to do it." Draco declared, seeming to find new wind and energy. Hera went to protest, but he continued anyway. "Don't make it your only plan. Have a backup, a defense, maybe some kind of gigantic ice shield or something. I've seen what your spells do when they hit the ground. This is a Death Tournament. No sense in holding back now."

She considered him for a moment as she thought about it, and then...

"Is this where you give me the 'you don't want to die a virgin' speech?" Hera asked innocently, batting her eyes at him dramatically. The entire party were unable to help themselves, breathlessly laughing while Snape gave a put upon sigh of annoyance.

"You're ridiculous." Draco snickered, laughing with them all. "I hope you know that."

Three days later, and one very annoying interview with Rita Skeeter later, Hera has finally made it to the moment where they would soon be told their tasks. Tony had warned her the woman had heard Hera's offhand comment, and the actions he was taking to dealing with her on the 'mundane' side of things. It left Skeeter with very little wiggle room other than the magical world, which would be dealt with in time. In any case, the task is almost at hand, and the Champions have all gathered in the tent; their nervousness a palpable thing. As nervous as Hera is, she can't leave them like this, and blurts out the first thing she can think of to alleviate the tension.

"Who else wonders if gold is really just Dragon Shite?" They all stare at her in shock, though Cedric coughs to cover up what could have passed for a snort. Hera grins widely, knowing she has their attention now. "Think about it! All the old stories say they hoard gold, yeah? But where do they get it? They didn't steal treasure. They stole cows! and then?…gold happened."

Suddenly all four of the Champions are outright belly laughing, which is how Ludo Bagman finds them when he walks into the tent.

...

She heard each of them going through their trials, which was probably not the best of ideas. It didn't help that she was dead last. Professor Snape couldn't be here to pull her out of her own head with some snarky comment or other. He'd briefly spoken to her about other projects, particularly finding repentant Death Eaters to test with the mark's removal. Both were sure it had to be repentance that made it possible, or else Magic would know and kill them for the slight, but finding someone to test was going to be a problem.

Thinking about her side project had actually helped pull her out of her own mind for a bit, because the announcement of the fourth whistle surprised her. She ignored the people in the stands, hundreds though there were. They would be a distraction if she let them, and she didn't need that right now. The Horntail was already glaring at her with large yellow eyes from the other side of the enclosure, crouched low over her clutch of eggs, her wings half-furled; a monstrous, scaly, black lizard, thrashing her spiked tail, leaving yard-long gouge marks in the hard ground. The crowd was loud, but Hera couldn't focus on that right now. She could hear the dragon grumbling, and knew that the Horntail was not just going to just give….Hang on. Now, there's a thought.

~Foolish hatchling, thinking you can just walk up to my nest. I'll show you! I'll-~

"You have an intruder in your nest," Hera casually commented, after casting a localized sonorus. Only the dragon would hear her. "a false egg."

~A Speaker?!~ The Horntail exclaimed in surprise, raising up and moving closer to her. To the crowd, it did not look good. ~Your kind have not spoken to us in centuries!~

"I didn't exactly know I could until a few years ago, and as I am still a…foolish hatchling, as you say, I've not had the chance to travel and test it." Hera pointed out, in good humour. "Will you give me the false egg? The impostor they put in your nest?"

~I like you, Little Hatchling, but I'm angry. Foolish humans think they can use me for their amusement! Think they can make me perform tricks for them!~ The Horntail snapped, now standing over her eggs with all the ferocity of an angry mother. ~I demand retribution! I demand vengeance!~

"They think much the same of me." Hera replied darkly. "I have an idea, if you're interested."

~I'm listening~

"…Set me on fire."

~WHAT?!~

"They use us for their desires, their goals, their ends. They care nothing for us. They want a show? I say we give them one," Hera supplied, slowly raising her wand about as if to prepare a spell. " and we remind them why they should NEVER toy with the likes of us!"

~I like you, Little Hatchling~ The Horntail grinned, it's many sharp teeth bare for all to see as it stands as if to attack. ~Get ready~

...

"Severus, why did you ask me to be here?" Lucius asked in a bored tone.

His friend knew better, of course. Severus was quite good by now at picking up on his tells. Draco had been insisting for a while now that siding with Potter was worth whatever risk the Dark Lord possibly coming back presented. His own interactions with the now Lady Potter and apprentice to his best friend left much to be desired in the way of showing power, though he could see she had a cunning mind and good business sense; their latest venture was quite lucrative, and just barely legal. He just didn't see what Draco saw, what Severus was trying to subtly tell him in so many words.

"You wanted to see a show of power." Severus replied casually, as he gestured down to the enclosure. They, of course, had top seats for the best view. "You're about to get it."

It didn't look like much was happening. Potter was just walking forward, and then the dragon was moving, posturing, angrily roaring her displeasure at having someone so close to her eggs. A deep breath from the Horntail, and then it was spewing fire…directly in Potter's path. There was nowhere for her to go, no escape, not that she attempted it. The fire engulfed her before either of the men could breathe.

"She didn't say she was going to do this!" Severus growled angrily.

Lucius was going to say that Severus was reacting to his grief at the loss of an apprentice with anger and denial, but then he stopped. In the center of the fire were blue sparks, wild and yet quite shield like. Taking his Omnoculars, he peered into the pocket the fire couldn't seem to penetrate. He couldn't believe his eyes. Potter was standing in the center of the flames, wand raised, hands up, her face locked in intense concentration, focusing the magic to act as a shield of the coldest ice. Nothing less would work on a dragon's fire breath.

Before the handlers could even try to make it onto the field, the Horntail had stopped her assault, revealing a very much alive Potter. Steam rolled off her in billowing waves, and sweat poured down her brow, but she looked no worse for wear. The crowd loses their collective minds upon finding out that Potter has the power to survive a direct blast of a dragon's fire breath. Another breath, this one deeper than the last, and then the Horntail was breathing fire down on her again. This time was different. This time the flames were more intense, coming dangerously close to the people sitting in the stands and the judges nearby. Whatever ice magic she was using was doing the same, and many of the students had already shielded themselves and their 'too-shocked-to-move' parents; belatedly reminding him that Potter had started a trend of teaching shield charms. When the flames stopped, Potter was no longer there, much to the dragon's confusion.

"There! She's under the dragon!" Lucius hissed in disbelief.

"That's not going to work for long." Severus noted, though he kept his eyes peeled on the girl. "What is she thinking?!"

"She's your apprentice." Lucius accused, as if that explained everything. "You tell me!"

...

From the moment he watched Hera disappear in the flames, his heart had dropped into his stomach. There was no way his mother was going to forgive him for bringing in the dragon that killed Hera Potter. It was only his knowledge that she could talk to dragons, and thus must have talked this over with the Horntail, that stopped him and the team from going out there. Seeing her standing there as waves of steam rolled off of her only confirmed it, and damn it if she didn't look mighty intimidating just standing there like that. She would be fine. She would scare the shite out of all of them, but she would be fine.

It was worse in the second wave, when the flames were hotter, and the ice more chaotic. She wasn't standing where she should have been when the flames stopped, but the dragon's confusion only confirmed that she knew the girl wasn't dead. She was under the dragon! The Horntail hadn't moved from her nest, standing over it as protective as any mother defending her children, but Charlie still almost had a heart attack when he realized that's where she was. As soon as the girl had the egg though, she bolted out of there like her arse was on fire; the Horntail roaring mightily as she swung her tail at the escaping prey.

"You planned that, didn't you!" Charlie called out, knowing she would hear him as they neared each other.

"I'm still not quitting school, Charlie!" She cackled with delight as she ran by.

...

"You're going to make me go gray, if you keep this up, Miss Potter." Professor McGonagall declared emphatically, as soon as Hera neared her.

"Well, it's either me or Father Time, and I can't let that old coot have all the fun." She grinned cheekily.

"You should see Madam Pomfrey before you head over to the judges, make sure no damage was done with that stunt." Professor McGonagall insisted wearily. "You certainly are your father's daughter, that's for sure; scaring me half to death. Did you mean for the flames to get so near the judges though? I think you singed off half Albus' beard. Karkaroff looks like a lobster, and poor Ludo…Well, at least they were able to quickly transfigure him a new pair of pants. I think Thicknesse just hid behind Madame Maxime to be honest."

Hera just chuckled in amusement. Madam Pomfrey was already waiting by the second tent, ready and willing to pull Hera into it, fussing at her all the while. Really, the woman wasn't wrong. The idea had been certifiably insane, but Hera just grinned at her like a loon as she worked, and Madam Pomfrey sighed in fond amusement. There was some kind of aloe stuff she was going to have to bathe in for the next week for trying to roast herself with dragon's fire, but other than that she would be fine. She was thinking about making an escape attempt, when Hermione and Ron burst into the tent.

"That was bloody brilliant!" Ron exclaimed with enthusiasm. "Charlie is gonna want to marry you for sure!"

"That was insane! You're insane, and brilliant, and don't you ever do that again!" Hermione declared exuberantly. "Did you really have to tell it to set you on fire?!"

Cedric squeaked in the next cubical, and shambled over as quickly as the cast on his leg would allow. "You told the dragon to set you on fire?!"

"To be fair, it was brilliant." Hera replied cheekily. "Super strong ice shield for the win."

"You talked to a dragon, and told it to set you on fire." Cedric repeated, trying to process that, before shambling back to his cubicle while muttering. "Bloody hell, she wasn't kidding."

"Hurry, before Madam Pomfrey gets back!" Hera hissed in exclamation, though she realized that was going to be easier said than done when she began to move with some difficulty; everything hurt, or felt like it was sun burnt, and she hobbled out of there with them near to steady her.

...

The judges looked like shite, most of them, as well they should. Barty Crouch Sr looked a bit out of it, but every so often, he would cough up smoke. Ludo Bagman was red with embarrassment, maybe not just embarrassment though. Karkaroff was smoking from his hair, and looking at her like he wanted to murder her. Madam Maxime shook with barely suppressed amusement, and Thicknesse jumped a bit like he thought he'd have to dive for cover again, but Dumbledore's state was the best. The man was subtly trying to stamp out the embers his long beard had turned into, smelling of burnt hair and lemons. Whatever the score would be, she would savor the looks on their faces for the rest of her life.

...

"What do you think now?" Severus asked, watching his apprentice as she smirked at the judges in typical Potter fashion. She'd meant for that dragon's fire to roast them, not that they could prove it.

"She's insane." Lucius declared, but it was clear he was more thoughtful than before. "Will she agree to meet with me? We no longer have the excuse of the Life Debt, and this is not something one can bring up in business."

"I believe she will, but be prepared, Lucius." Severus warned. "Potter bears her namesake well. She is wrath and vengeance, protector and defender, and if she believes you insincere, it will not end well."

Lucius looked at him contemplatively, before replying. "What aren't you telling me?"

"Many things, as always." Severus reminded him. "We are Slytherin after all."

Slytherin Common Room was a mad house. A wall of noise hit her as soon as they stepped into the place. Hermione rolled her eyes in fondness at her friend still grinning like a loon, though the grin was a bit pinched when she walked. Fred and George had food nicked from the kitchens, and it was becoming quite the party. Ron had somehow been let in again; along with Seamus, Dean, Colin, and Dennis.

Colin was already taking pictures, though careful to avoid directly blinding anyone, and there were already requests for copies; paid for, of course. Everyone was going mad over the fact that she had stood in the face of fire, literally, and survived. When they found out it was because she and the Horntail had been in cahoots together, they were nigh ecstatic. Such a subtle way of using a gift many disapproved of, to garner favour with a dragon, the so overt it's covert idea that Fred and George loved so much.

"Blimey, this is heavy." Neville grunted, picking up the egg. "Did you want to open it now?"

"Yeah, let's hear it!"

Several people echoed his sentiment, and Hera couldn't resist. She cracked open the egg, and a high pitched screeching sound echoed through the common room. People started clasping their ears at the sudden shrillness of it, many calling for Hera to close it, but she didn't. Quickly grabbing a notebook and biro Hermione was certain Hera had just conjured up, Hera began writing something down. Merlin's beard, it was a language, but Hermione couldn't think of anything that sounded like that. When Hera managed to shut it, she looked more shaken than before, passing the note to Hermione to read.

"Come seek us where our voices sound,

We cannot sing above the ground,

And while you're searching, ponder this:

We've taken what you'll sorely miss,

An hour long you have to look,

And to recover what we took,

But past an hour…the prospect's black,

Too late, it's gone, it won't come back."