Author's Notes: Thanks again to everyone who has reviewed. I hope you like
this chapter.
Disclaimer: See part one for full disclaimer; nothing you recognise is mine, as usual.
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"Let's try this again, Harry," Zodiac said wearily. "This time, try not to hit the ceiling."
Thor nodded, every bit as tired as Zodiac, and levitated himself. A moment later, his head again hit the ceiling, and he dropped to the floor with a groan.
"I'm never going to get this," he complained. "It's worse than it was when I first learnt it – I still know how to do it, I have all the technique, I just can't control the damn power!" He rose unsteadily. "Zodiac, we've been at this all day."
"And we'll stay at it until you can levitate yourself safely again," Zodiac snapped. "Do you want to go into battle knowing the next time you try to levitate out of the way of your opponent's spell, you could end up on the Moon?"
"No," Thor conceded with a sigh. "Can we at least take a short break?" Zodiac gazed at him for a moment, then nodded.
"Five minutes," he warned. "Not a moment longer." Thor smiled, a rare occurrence since he had woken up five days before, and swiftly left the room. Sirius and Snape were waiting for him in the hallway, and they grimaced at him as he dropped thankfully into a waiting chair.
"You look like he's killing you," Snape remarked dryly. "Perhaps he really is." Thor spared him a glare.
"No," He objected. "It's not that bad, it's just frustrating." He searched for a comparison. "Imagine if you still knew all the theory of making potions, but you didn't have steady enough hands to make them properly, or you didn't have a crucial ingredient. It's like that. I remember how to do everything, it's just…I can't control what I do. It's worse than when I first started training."
"Are you finished for the day?" Sirius wanted to know. Thor shook his head.
"Only a break," he explained. "I've got some control back, but I need to be able to levitate by the end of the day, or Zodiac will make me work all night. Again." He yawned. "Has Hermione found anything yet?"
"No," Sirius admitted. "And she's not likely to, Seraph says. She says that she may have caught a glimpse of Voldemort in the Dragon-realms – was that it, Snape?" Snape nodded agreement. Thor looked sharply at his godfather.
"Is she sure?" he demanded. Sirius silently nodded. Thor leant his head back against the cool wall, fighting the onslaught of a headache. "Damn. Damn. Bloody Mother of Dragons."
"Thor!" Zodiac called from inside the room. "Get back in here and fix this mess!" Thor pushed himself out of his chair, offered Sirius a wan smile, and went back to Zodiac, who was standing in the middle of the room with chairs flying around him.
"I didn't mean to do it," Thor excused himself as he attempted to set the chairs back down on the floor. "Sirius just told me that it's now almost certain that Voldemort is in the Dragon-realms."
"The fact that you didn't mean to do it shows everything," Zodiac reminded him. "Thor, if you don't get this under control, you'll never be able to get into the Dragon-realms, and neither will the rest of us without you. It shouldn't be so hard on you, you've done this before."
"Well, as long as it doesn't take another ten years, I'll be satisfied," Thor muttered, as he finally got all the chairs back onto the ground. "Actually, no I won't," he sighed. Zodiac gazed at him compassionately for a moment, then nodded slowly.
"I know," he said softly. "I won't let it take ten years, Thor. I won't let it take another ten days unless it's absolutely necessary. Now, levitate two meters off the ground. If you hit the ceiling again I'll take away those boots you're so damn fond of." Thor grimaced, and lifted himself off the ground. A moment later, he peered down at Zodiac.
"Three meters is better than last time," he reminded the Mage. "Do I get to keep my boots?" Zodiac grinned, and Thor dropped back down to the ground. "I'll try for two," Thor said, and again levitated. Hitting the ceiling. Zodiac's grin disappeared, and he moved over to the wall and hit his head on it repeatedly.
"You'll give yourself concussion," Thor remarked, drifting back down to the ground. "I'm doing better than I was, Zodiac, you have to admit it."
"Oh, yes," Zodiac agreed. "You can control your levitation one time out of five, you can block Unicorn, Dragon, Griffin, Beast and Basilisk magics three times out of ten, and you can't aim a spell to save your life, literally. Forgive me if I start worrying, Thor!" Thor was silent. "Look, I'm sorry, Harry," Zodiac apologised. "It's just difficult. You're one of the best, and now, without any control…"
"I'm worse than a beginning apprentice," Thor completed. 'I know. But I am improving, and I do still know how to do everything." He shrugged awkwardly. "And I'm not one of the best. I'm not half as sensible as you or Seraph…I rush into things." He smiled lopsidedly. "When I was at school they'd call it Gryffindor bravery, rushing into things courageously without thinking them through. That's what I do, I'm afraid."
"But you recognise that," Zodiac pointed out. "You can see that shortcoming in yourself. It's the first step towards correcting it." Thor nodded, then took a deep breath, and slowly levitated himself up into the air.
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It was dark now, and Thor sat on the castle steps watching the stars reveal themselves above him. Most of the inhabitants of the castle were asleep or nearly, but Thor hadn't been able to find that peaceful state of being, and so he had come out to stargaze.
The door opened behind him. Dumbledore sat down on the step next to him.
"Hello, Professor," Thor greeted softly. "What brings you out here?"
"I haven't seen you in several days, I was wondering how you are, Thor," Dumbledore replied equally quietly. "I assume your re-training is going according to plan?"
"Well, I'm still at about the level I was ten years ago control-wise," Thor admitted. "But I'm improving quickly. At least, I think I am." He shrugged. "Only time will tell, and unfortunately we're running out of it."
"Indeed. Mage Seraph tells me that she has pinpointed Voldemort's location to the Dragon-realms. Will the Council of Mages be journeying there?"
Thor shrugged again. "Probably not. Zodiac and Seraph won't actually come straight out and say it, but the Council won't touch Voldemort with a ten- foot barge pole, especially whilst he's in the Dragon-realms. Mages aren't supposed to interfere with the dragons, you see. And Voldemort…well, if I asked them outright about why they're not going to help stop him, they'd say that I've always insisted he's my problem." Thor shook his head. "But I don't know if I can beat him," he admitted. "I thought I could, but he got through my barrier, and now…now he has emotional leverage against me. He has my apprentice."
"Voldemort has always used peoples emotions to his advantage," Dumbledore noted. "And, of course, he is quite likely angry at Draco for depriving him of Lucius Malfoy." Thor nodded slowly. "May I ask you something, Thor?"
Thor gave him a strange look. "I remember when I asked you that," he murmured. "Of course you can, Professor."
"If the Circle of Mages are forbidden from interfering with dragons, why are you so insistent on following Voldemort into the Dragon-realms?" the wizard inquired. "Surely there will be repercussions of such an action." Thor met his eyes; the wizard knew why he was going to do this, he realised. A corner of his mouth twitched.
"Draco," he replied quietly. "It's always Draco. And yes, there will be repercussions. But not, I suspect, of the sort you are thinking of." He stretched languidly. "Urgh. I think I have another concussion from hitting my head too hard." He was deliberately avoiding the subject, and he knew that Dumbledore knew it. He was fixed with a steady gaze from the wizard, and he sighed. "It's…complicated," he admitted. "More complicated than anyone ever thought while I was attending Hogwarts. You see…" He let out a breath. "There's a Dragon Prophecy," he admitted. "About me. About how I'm supposed to make peace in the world, or something or other. There've been a load of different interpretations of it."
"Would this be the Prophecy about the Dragon Child ruling with a Unicorn born?" Dumbledore inquired slowly. "I seem to recall Mr Malfoy becoming very excited about it some years ago." Thor nodded. "So you are this Dragon Child."
"Yes," Thor agreed. "And I think…I think Draco is the Unicorn born." They were silent for a long time. Thor gazed up at the stars, idly naming them in his mind. A cool wind started up.
"I had not appreciated until now exactly how much you have changed, Harry," Dumbledore admitted finally. "I apologise for it. You have grown up more than any of us expected, I think." Thor raised his eyebrows.
'Apology accepted," he said. "Gladly. I have grown up…but in other ways I haven't." He gazed up thoughtfully at the sky again. Dumbledore's talk of growing up was making him feel nostalgic, and he intensely disliked the feeling. But then again, he did miss those days when he had been a Gryffindor, bickering with the Slytherins, baiting Snape, talking to Hagrid…A lump rose in his throat. Back then he hadn't had a problem controlling his magic. Back then his worst problem had been whether or not he was going to pass the next Transfiguration test…that, or worrying about man-eating basilisks…
His head snapped up. Basilisks. The Chamber of Secrets. Basilisk Magic. The Founders' Magic! A slow grin spread across his face. "I don't suppose my dad's Cloak is anywhere about, is it?"
Dumbledore looked at him curiously. "Yes, I believe Hermione has it," he replied. 'Why, Thor?"
"I have a feeling it might come in useful," Thor remarked, stretching again. He stood up. "Goodnight, Professor." He moved into the castle, leaving Dumbledore thinking. He slipped through the dark corridors, up through the school, until he reached Hermione's room. He knocked on the door. A moment later, Hermione appeared, bleary-eyed.
"Harry, it's nearly midnight," she yawned. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong," he said hurriedly. "Dumbledore said you have my old Cloak." She stared at him in disbelief. 'I'm going for a walk, and I don't want anyone to see me," he enlarged. She raised a sceptical eyebrow. 'Oh, if you must know I'm going down to the Chamber of Secrets."
Her expression instantly changed from one of disapproval to excitement. "Oh, Harry, really? I've never been down there, I don't suppose…"
"Okay," Thor relented. "But you'll have to come now, and don't make a fuss about anything that happens, alright?" The suspicious look that he knew so well crept onto her face.
"Harry," she said slowly. "What are you going to do?" A smile spread across his face.
"I figured something out," he explained. "Only Zodiac and Seraph would kill me if they found out." She raised an eyebrow expectantly. "Basilisks, Hermione! Basilisks! That one I killed – there must be reams of Basilisk Magic down there, and if I combine *that* with the Founders' Magic that is inherently in the castle, I *might* be able to restore my control again without having to work at it. I also might be able to open a semi-permanent portal to the Dragon-realms that would let all you non-Mages in!"
"But Harry, you don't have any control to begin with," she pointed out. "What could happen if it doesn't work?"
He frowned. "I hadn't thought of that," he admitted. "Hmm. Well, I guess at worst I could blow up the school." She looked horrified. "But I really don't think that will happen," he assured her. "And anyway, the Chamber is under the lake, so it would be the lake that exploded, not the school. So no-one would get hurt."
"Have you told anyone except me about this?" Hermione demanded. Thor shuffled his feet. "Harry, you at least have to tell someone that you're going." He opened his mouth. "And I don't count, since I'm going with you."
He frowned, then grinned. "George. We can tell George." Hermione gave a long-suffering sigh, and disappeared into her rooms for a moment. She returned, dressed, dragging a half-asleep Weasley twin.
"What is going on?" George demanded. "I was in the middle of a really good dream."
"Hermione and I are going to the Chamber of Secrets to see if I can restore my magical control using the Founders' Magic of Hogwarts and the Basilisk Magic left over by Slytherin's basilisks," Thor said in a rush. "Hermione said we had to tell someone. We've told you. See you later, George." He tugged the familiar material from Hermione's hands, settled it over himself and Hermione, and rushed her off down the corridor before his words could settle into George's sleep-clogged mind.
"Harry!" Hermione hissed. "That was not what I had in mind!"
"Sorry," he murmured. "Come on – Moaning Myrtle's bathroom."
"She still has a crush on you, you know," Hermione reminded him slyly. Thor shrugged. "I'll just tell her I'm bi and in love with Draco," he said complacently. "Come on, I want to do this before Zodiac and Seraph realise I'm gone."
"Harry, exactly how much trouble could you get into for doing this?" she asked. He flashed her a grin.
"Where's your Gryffindor spirit?" he demanded amusedly. "This isn't any different from anything I did when I was here…except that there's a chance I could be de-Named because of it." They had reached Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, and he gave her no chance to exclaim her shock. He pulled the Cloak off them – Myrtle was thankfully absent – and searched the sinks for the small etching of a snake that he *knew* was here.
"Damned if I can remember which bloody tap it was," he muttered. "Ah – here it is." He looked back at Hermione, taking a deep breath. "Ready?"
"AS I'll ever be," she agreed. "Go ahead."
He looked back at the tap. "Open up," he hissed. The hole in the wall swirled open just as he remembered. Now that he was a Mage, he could almost smell the Basilisk Magic oozing from the hidden Chamber. He shot a grin at Hermione. "I was right," he told her. "There's enough Magic down there to blast a hole in the fabric of time if someone does the right spells."
"Don't even think about doing the 'right spells'," she cautioned him. He held out a hand silently, and she took it. He bit his lip, and slowly levitated them both through the hole, and down into the Chamber of Secrets.
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Zodiac sat up suddenly. He gazed about wildly for a moment, then leapt out of bed, pulled on his shirt, and raced into the adjoining room where Thor was supposed to be sleeping. The resulting swearing brought Seraph in from her room, wearing only her uniform shirt and rubbing at her eyes.
'What the hell is it?" she demanded. "It's midnight, Zodiac!"
"Thor's gone," Zodiac said grimly. "And you can bet that he's about to do something stupid."
Seraph stared at him for a moment, then nodded. "I'll get dressed," she said crisply. "You…finish getting dressed. Three minutes." She disappeared back into her room, and Zodiac returned to his.
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"So this is the Chamber of Secrets," Hermione whispered. Her voice echoed around the damp walls and caverns. "It's very…wet."
"And it still stinks of basilisk blood from fifteen years ago," Thor complained, picking his way over a pile of rubble. "Hmph. And Basilisk Magic, if it comes to that." He looked around. 'It hasn't changed – although I guess there's been no-one to come in here."
"Mmm," Hermione agreed, not succeeding at hiding her anxiousness. "Harry, could you just do…whatever it is you want to do and get us out of here?" he spared her a thoughtful glance, but nodded, and closed his eyes. Hermione took a calming breath as wisps of silvery dust began floating around him. She took an unconscious step away from him. Thor ignored her. He was attempting to drag the Basilisk magic into him to rebuild the barriers that he *knew* were in there – he was almost positive that the mental barriers of his control had only been veiled, or dismantled by Voldemort. If they had been completely gone, he wouldn't have even had a modicum of control.
But Thor was unprepared for the other Magics that had somehow been mixed up with the Basilisk Magic. He managed to identify Griffin Magic, Unicorn Magic, and even some Dragon Magic all mixed up in the most dangerous combination of Magics he had ever seen. There was enough Magic here to blow a hole through the earth, he realised with a shock. And he was in no condition to control it. He could have kicked himself for his stupidity, but the Magics were freezing him in his place as they swamped him…he couldn't control it, he couldn't stop the Magics entering him…he barely heard Hermione's shriek of fear as he seemed to go blind…
Then the Magic stopped rushing into him, and he collapsed onto the wet, cold ground.
'Silly child,' hissed a familiar voice. 'What were you thinking? Do you have any comprehension of the Magics you have disturbed here?' Thor could not answer, his throat was raw, and all of his muscles were screaming in agony. The dragon stalked around him, settling onto the ground in front of him. 'Stupid, stupid dragonling. Now you have set in motion things that should have not begun for many of your months. You continually interfere with your destiny!'
'Ygrivaine-Morpugra,' Thor gasped. 'What…what was that?' The dragon was silent in her fury. 'Ygrivaine-Morpugra, please, I must know what I have done.'
'You have begun the Change,' the dragon admitted softly, her anger fleeing before her compassion. 'Now there is no chance for you to stop the wheels of destiny and time.'
'What is the Change?' Thor demanded shrilly. 'What is happening? Is it something to do with the Prophecy?'
'Yes,' the dragon agreed. 'The Change is what makes you a Dragon Child in power and mind as well as in birth. The Change is what turns you from a mere Mage into the Dragon King of the realms. The Change is what makes the Unicorn-born who will rule by your side aware of who he is.'
'It is Draco then,' Thor gasped, still in agony. 'He is the Unicorn-born of the Prophecy.' The dragon's words caught up with him. 'Ygrivaine- Morpugra, then that is what the Prophecy means? I am supposed to rule?'
'Yes,' the dragon admitted quietly. 'That is what the Prophecy means.'
'But…but I can't rule,' Thor protested. 'I – I can't – I'm not good enough – I'm too young…'
'The last Dragon Child was younger than you," Ygrivaine-Morpugra chided him. 'And you have your Unicorn-born beside you to aid you.'
'But he is gone,' Thor whispered. 'Voldemort took him – tell me, Ygrivaine- Morpugra, is he in the Dragon-realms? Is he?' His muscles burned, he almost shrieked with the pain, but he kept his green eyes on the black jewelled gaze of the dragon.
'We do not interfere in your matters, dragonling,' the dragon told him quietly. 'But…' she seemed uneasy at saying this, 'but you *are* the Dragon Child…' Thor urged her on with his eyes – he could not do more, he felt like he was going to throw up. 'Yes. Yes, they are in the eastern most part of the Dragon-realms. Because he has the Unicorn-born, none of us dare to confront and expel the Mage Voldemort. That is all I may tell you.'
'It is more than enough,' Thor managed. 'Thank you, Ygrivaine-Morpugra. I can't express my gratitude.' The dragon gazed at him solemnly for a long moment.
'No, my dragonling,' she said quietly. 'It is I that should thank you.' She raised herself from the ground, and then made the dragon equivalent to a obeisance. Thor stared. Such a motion was, for a dragon, reserved for the most high. It was the most honouring thing a dragon could do. Ygrivaine-Morpugra looked up at him again. 'Until I see you in the Dragon- realms, my king, stay safe.' Thor gazed in shock at her as she spread her leathery wings, flapped them once, and disappeared.
"Harry! Harry! HARRY!" Hermione was screaming. Thor blinked, then turned his head, noting that the pain was fading from his limbs. "Harry, what the hell was that!"
"I should like to know that too!" Zodiac said harshly from the entrance to the Chamber. "You left that entrance open, Thor," he told the younger Mage. "What in blazes do you think you were doing, Summoning a dragon in a place as magically mixed-up as this?"
"I didn't," Thor rasped. He pulled himself to his feet, facing away from them for a moment as he made sure that he could actually stand, then looked at them. Zodiac took one look at him and stepped backwards in disbelief. "I didn't Summon her, she just came. She says that I've set the Change in motion, for me and for Draco." He carefully stretched first one arm, then the other, as the pain was replaced by stiffness.
"The Change," Zodiac repeated. "Mother of all dragons, Harry…Thor…you've begun the Change." Seraph, who had been just behind him, stepped forward now, her eyes firmly fixed on Thor's.
"My king," she said formally. "I greet you." Then she knelt, the greatest show of trust, respect, and honour a Mage could give, the equivalent of the dragon obeisance. Thor blinked.
Then Zodiac followed Seraph's example and knelt. "My king," he echoed. "I greet you."
Hermione looked disbelievingly between all the Mages. Then she looked at Thor, and she too knelt, for although she did not know the meaning of what had just happened, she understood the significance of it. Thor gazed at all three of them, then a strange smile flitted over his face.
"Yes," he murmured, more to himself than to anyone else. "Yes. I am the Dragon King."
Far away, in eastern parts of the Dragon-realms, Voldemort stiffened in pain. Draco, tied up behind him on the ground, felt it too, but he did not feel pain. He felt as if he was awakening from a dream, and only now was he in the real world. He knew who he was, what he was meant to do…and he knew that Thor was now the Dragon King.
"So," Voldemort hissed. "I greatly wonder who this Dragon King is." He slowly turned to face Draco; Draco met his gaze evenly and without fear. "Perhaps," Voldemort mused. "You will tell me." He advanced on Draco with slow, deliberate steps, and Draco reached out in his mind to Thor.
*Help me* he called silently. *Help me, Harry.*
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To be continued.
Disclaimer: See part one for full disclaimer; nothing you recognise is mine, as usual.
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"Let's try this again, Harry," Zodiac said wearily. "This time, try not to hit the ceiling."
Thor nodded, every bit as tired as Zodiac, and levitated himself. A moment later, his head again hit the ceiling, and he dropped to the floor with a groan.
"I'm never going to get this," he complained. "It's worse than it was when I first learnt it – I still know how to do it, I have all the technique, I just can't control the damn power!" He rose unsteadily. "Zodiac, we've been at this all day."
"And we'll stay at it until you can levitate yourself safely again," Zodiac snapped. "Do you want to go into battle knowing the next time you try to levitate out of the way of your opponent's spell, you could end up on the Moon?"
"No," Thor conceded with a sigh. "Can we at least take a short break?" Zodiac gazed at him for a moment, then nodded.
"Five minutes," he warned. "Not a moment longer." Thor smiled, a rare occurrence since he had woken up five days before, and swiftly left the room. Sirius and Snape were waiting for him in the hallway, and they grimaced at him as he dropped thankfully into a waiting chair.
"You look like he's killing you," Snape remarked dryly. "Perhaps he really is." Thor spared him a glare.
"No," He objected. "It's not that bad, it's just frustrating." He searched for a comparison. "Imagine if you still knew all the theory of making potions, but you didn't have steady enough hands to make them properly, or you didn't have a crucial ingredient. It's like that. I remember how to do everything, it's just…I can't control what I do. It's worse than when I first started training."
"Are you finished for the day?" Sirius wanted to know. Thor shook his head.
"Only a break," he explained. "I've got some control back, but I need to be able to levitate by the end of the day, or Zodiac will make me work all night. Again." He yawned. "Has Hermione found anything yet?"
"No," Sirius admitted. "And she's not likely to, Seraph says. She says that she may have caught a glimpse of Voldemort in the Dragon-realms – was that it, Snape?" Snape nodded agreement. Thor looked sharply at his godfather.
"Is she sure?" he demanded. Sirius silently nodded. Thor leant his head back against the cool wall, fighting the onslaught of a headache. "Damn. Damn. Bloody Mother of Dragons."
"Thor!" Zodiac called from inside the room. "Get back in here and fix this mess!" Thor pushed himself out of his chair, offered Sirius a wan smile, and went back to Zodiac, who was standing in the middle of the room with chairs flying around him.
"I didn't mean to do it," Thor excused himself as he attempted to set the chairs back down on the floor. "Sirius just told me that it's now almost certain that Voldemort is in the Dragon-realms."
"The fact that you didn't mean to do it shows everything," Zodiac reminded him. "Thor, if you don't get this under control, you'll never be able to get into the Dragon-realms, and neither will the rest of us without you. It shouldn't be so hard on you, you've done this before."
"Well, as long as it doesn't take another ten years, I'll be satisfied," Thor muttered, as he finally got all the chairs back onto the ground. "Actually, no I won't," he sighed. Zodiac gazed at him compassionately for a moment, then nodded slowly.
"I know," he said softly. "I won't let it take ten years, Thor. I won't let it take another ten days unless it's absolutely necessary. Now, levitate two meters off the ground. If you hit the ceiling again I'll take away those boots you're so damn fond of." Thor grimaced, and lifted himself off the ground. A moment later, he peered down at Zodiac.
"Three meters is better than last time," he reminded the Mage. "Do I get to keep my boots?" Zodiac grinned, and Thor dropped back down to the ground. "I'll try for two," Thor said, and again levitated. Hitting the ceiling. Zodiac's grin disappeared, and he moved over to the wall and hit his head on it repeatedly.
"You'll give yourself concussion," Thor remarked, drifting back down to the ground. "I'm doing better than I was, Zodiac, you have to admit it."
"Oh, yes," Zodiac agreed. "You can control your levitation one time out of five, you can block Unicorn, Dragon, Griffin, Beast and Basilisk magics three times out of ten, and you can't aim a spell to save your life, literally. Forgive me if I start worrying, Thor!" Thor was silent. "Look, I'm sorry, Harry," Zodiac apologised. "It's just difficult. You're one of the best, and now, without any control…"
"I'm worse than a beginning apprentice," Thor completed. 'I know. But I am improving, and I do still know how to do everything." He shrugged awkwardly. "And I'm not one of the best. I'm not half as sensible as you or Seraph…I rush into things." He smiled lopsidedly. "When I was at school they'd call it Gryffindor bravery, rushing into things courageously without thinking them through. That's what I do, I'm afraid."
"But you recognise that," Zodiac pointed out. "You can see that shortcoming in yourself. It's the first step towards correcting it." Thor nodded, then took a deep breath, and slowly levitated himself up into the air.
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It was dark now, and Thor sat on the castle steps watching the stars reveal themselves above him. Most of the inhabitants of the castle were asleep or nearly, but Thor hadn't been able to find that peaceful state of being, and so he had come out to stargaze.
The door opened behind him. Dumbledore sat down on the step next to him.
"Hello, Professor," Thor greeted softly. "What brings you out here?"
"I haven't seen you in several days, I was wondering how you are, Thor," Dumbledore replied equally quietly. "I assume your re-training is going according to plan?"
"Well, I'm still at about the level I was ten years ago control-wise," Thor admitted. "But I'm improving quickly. At least, I think I am." He shrugged. "Only time will tell, and unfortunately we're running out of it."
"Indeed. Mage Seraph tells me that she has pinpointed Voldemort's location to the Dragon-realms. Will the Council of Mages be journeying there?"
Thor shrugged again. "Probably not. Zodiac and Seraph won't actually come straight out and say it, but the Council won't touch Voldemort with a ten- foot barge pole, especially whilst he's in the Dragon-realms. Mages aren't supposed to interfere with the dragons, you see. And Voldemort…well, if I asked them outright about why they're not going to help stop him, they'd say that I've always insisted he's my problem." Thor shook his head. "But I don't know if I can beat him," he admitted. "I thought I could, but he got through my barrier, and now…now he has emotional leverage against me. He has my apprentice."
"Voldemort has always used peoples emotions to his advantage," Dumbledore noted. "And, of course, he is quite likely angry at Draco for depriving him of Lucius Malfoy." Thor nodded slowly. "May I ask you something, Thor?"
Thor gave him a strange look. "I remember when I asked you that," he murmured. "Of course you can, Professor."
"If the Circle of Mages are forbidden from interfering with dragons, why are you so insistent on following Voldemort into the Dragon-realms?" the wizard inquired. "Surely there will be repercussions of such an action." Thor met his eyes; the wizard knew why he was going to do this, he realised. A corner of his mouth twitched.
"Draco," he replied quietly. "It's always Draco. And yes, there will be repercussions. But not, I suspect, of the sort you are thinking of." He stretched languidly. "Urgh. I think I have another concussion from hitting my head too hard." He was deliberately avoiding the subject, and he knew that Dumbledore knew it. He was fixed with a steady gaze from the wizard, and he sighed. "It's…complicated," he admitted. "More complicated than anyone ever thought while I was attending Hogwarts. You see…" He let out a breath. "There's a Dragon Prophecy," he admitted. "About me. About how I'm supposed to make peace in the world, or something or other. There've been a load of different interpretations of it."
"Would this be the Prophecy about the Dragon Child ruling with a Unicorn born?" Dumbledore inquired slowly. "I seem to recall Mr Malfoy becoming very excited about it some years ago." Thor nodded. "So you are this Dragon Child."
"Yes," Thor agreed. "And I think…I think Draco is the Unicorn born." They were silent for a long time. Thor gazed up at the stars, idly naming them in his mind. A cool wind started up.
"I had not appreciated until now exactly how much you have changed, Harry," Dumbledore admitted finally. "I apologise for it. You have grown up more than any of us expected, I think." Thor raised his eyebrows.
'Apology accepted," he said. "Gladly. I have grown up…but in other ways I haven't." He gazed up thoughtfully at the sky again. Dumbledore's talk of growing up was making him feel nostalgic, and he intensely disliked the feeling. But then again, he did miss those days when he had been a Gryffindor, bickering with the Slytherins, baiting Snape, talking to Hagrid…A lump rose in his throat. Back then he hadn't had a problem controlling his magic. Back then his worst problem had been whether or not he was going to pass the next Transfiguration test…that, or worrying about man-eating basilisks…
His head snapped up. Basilisks. The Chamber of Secrets. Basilisk Magic. The Founders' Magic! A slow grin spread across his face. "I don't suppose my dad's Cloak is anywhere about, is it?"
Dumbledore looked at him curiously. "Yes, I believe Hermione has it," he replied. 'Why, Thor?"
"I have a feeling it might come in useful," Thor remarked, stretching again. He stood up. "Goodnight, Professor." He moved into the castle, leaving Dumbledore thinking. He slipped through the dark corridors, up through the school, until he reached Hermione's room. He knocked on the door. A moment later, Hermione appeared, bleary-eyed.
"Harry, it's nearly midnight," she yawned. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong," he said hurriedly. "Dumbledore said you have my old Cloak." She stared at him in disbelief. 'I'm going for a walk, and I don't want anyone to see me," he enlarged. She raised a sceptical eyebrow. 'Oh, if you must know I'm going down to the Chamber of Secrets."
Her expression instantly changed from one of disapproval to excitement. "Oh, Harry, really? I've never been down there, I don't suppose…"
"Okay," Thor relented. "But you'll have to come now, and don't make a fuss about anything that happens, alright?" The suspicious look that he knew so well crept onto her face.
"Harry," she said slowly. "What are you going to do?" A smile spread across his face.
"I figured something out," he explained. "Only Zodiac and Seraph would kill me if they found out." She raised an eyebrow expectantly. "Basilisks, Hermione! Basilisks! That one I killed – there must be reams of Basilisk Magic down there, and if I combine *that* with the Founders' Magic that is inherently in the castle, I *might* be able to restore my control again without having to work at it. I also might be able to open a semi-permanent portal to the Dragon-realms that would let all you non-Mages in!"
"But Harry, you don't have any control to begin with," she pointed out. "What could happen if it doesn't work?"
He frowned. "I hadn't thought of that," he admitted. "Hmm. Well, I guess at worst I could blow up the school." She looked horrified. "But I really don't think that will happen," he assured her. "And anyway, the Chamber is under the lake, so it would be the lake that exploded, not the school. So no-one would get hurt."
"Have you told anyone except me about this?" Hermione demanded. Thor shuffled his feet. "Harry, you at least have to tell someone that you're going." He opened his mouth. "And I don't count, since I'm going with you."
He frowned, then grinned. "George. We can tell George." Hermione gave a long-suffering sigh, and disappeared into her rooms for a moment. She returned, dressed, dragging a half-asleep Weasley twin.
"What is going on?" George demanded. "I was in the middle of a really good dream."
"Hermione and I are going to the Chamber of Secrets to see if I can restore my magical control using the Founders' Magic of Hogwarts and the Basilisk Magic left over by Slytherin's basilisks," Thor said in a rush. "Hermione said we had to tell someone. We've told you. See you later, George." He tugged the familiar material from Hermione's hands, settled it over himself and Hermione, and rushed her off down the corridor before his words could settle into George's sleep-clogged mind.
"Harry!" Hermione hissed. "That was not what I had in mind!"
"Sorry," he murmured. "Come on – Moaning Myrtle's bathroom."
"She still has a crush on you, you know," Hermione reminded him slyly. Thor shrugged. "I'll just tell her I'm bi and in love with Draco," he said complacently. "Come on, I want to do this before Zodiac and Seraph realise I'm gone."
"Harry, exactly how much trouble could you get into for doing this?" she asked. He flashed her a grin.
"Where's your Gryffindor spirit?" he demanded amusedly. "This isn't any different from anything I did when I was here…except that there's a chance I could be de-Named because of it." They had reached Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, and he gave her no chance to exclaim her shock. He pulled the Cloak off them – Myrtle was thankfully absent – and searched the sinks for the small etching of a snake that he *knew* was here.
"Damned if I can remember which bloody tap it was," he muttered. "Ah – here it is." He looked back at Hermione, taking a deep breath. "Ready?"
"AS I'll ever be," she agreed. "Go ahead."
He looked back at the tap. "Open up," he hissed. The hole in the wall swirled open just as he remembered. Now that he was a Mage, he could almost smell the Basilisk Magic oozing from the hidden Chamber. He shot a grin at Hermione. "I was right," he told her. "There's enough Magic down there to blast a hole in the fabric of time if someone does the right spells."
"Don't even think about doing the 'right spells'," she cautioned him. He held out a hand silently, and she took it. He bit his lip, and slowly levitated them both through the hole, and down into the Chamber of Secrets.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Zodiac sat up suddenly. He gazed about wildly for a moment, then leapt out of bed, pulled on his shirt, and raced into the adjoining room where Thor was supposed to be sleeping. The resulting swearing brought Seraph in from her room, wearing only her uniform shirt and rubbing at her eyes.
'What the hell is it?" she demanded. "It's midnight, Zodiac!"
"Thor's gone," Zodiac said grimly. "And you can bet that he's about to do something stupid."
Seraph stared at him for a moment, then nodded. "I'll get dressed," she said crisply. "You…finish getting dressed. Three minutes." She disappeared back into her room, and Zodiac returned to his.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"So this is the Chamber of Secrets," Hermione whispered. Her voice echoed around the damp walls and caverns. "It's very…wet."
"And it still stinks of basilisk blood from fifteen years ago," Thor complained, picking his way over a pile of rubble. "Hmph. And Basilisk Magic, if it comes to that." He looked around. 'It hasn't changed – although I guess there's been no-one to come in here."
"Mmm," Hermione agreed, not succeeding at hiding her anxiousness. "Harry, could you just do…whatever it is you want to do and get us out of here?" he spared her a thoughtful glance, but nodded, and closed his eyes. Hermione took a calming breath as wisps of silvery dust began floating around him. She took an unconscious step away from him. Thor ignored her. He was attempting to drag the Basilisk magic into him to rebuild the barriers that he *knew* were in there – he was almost positive that the mental barriers of his control had only been veiled, or dismantled by Voldemort. If they had been completely gone, he wouldn't have even had a modicum of control.
But Thor was unprepared for the other Magics that had somehow been mixed up with the Basilisk Magic. He managed to identify Griffin Magic, Unicorn Magic, and even some Dragon Magic all mixed up in the most dangerous combination of Magics he had ever seen. There was enough Magic here to blow a hole through the earth, he realised with a shock. And he was in no condition to control it. He could have kicked himself for his stupidity, but the Magics were freezing him in his place as they swamped him…he couldn't control it, he couldn't stop the Magics entering him…he barely heard Hermione's shriek of fear as he seemed to go blind…
Then the Magic stopped rushing into him, and he collapsed onto the wet, cold ground.
'Silly child,' hissed a familiar voice. 'What were you thinking? Do you have any comprehension of the Magics you have disturbed here?' Thor could not answer, his throat was raw, and all of his muscles were screaming in agony. The dragon stalked around him, settling onto the ground in front of him. 'Stupid, stupid dragonling. Now you have set in motion things that should have not begun for many of your months. You continually interfere with your destiny!'
'Ygrivaine-Morpugra,' Thor gasped. 'What…what was that?' The dragon was silent in her fury. 'Ygrivaine-Morpugra, please, I must know what I have done.'
'You have begun the Change,' the dragon admitted softly, her anger fleeing before her compassion. 'Now there is no chance for you to stop the wheels of destiny and time.'
'What is the Change?' Thor demanded shrilly. 'What is happening? Is it something to do with the Prophecy?'
'Yes,' the dragon agreed. 'The Change is what makes you a Dragon Child in power and mind as well as in birth. The Change is what turns you from a mere Mage into the Dragon King of the realms. The Change is what makes the Unicorn-born who will rule by your side aware of who he is.'
'It is Draco then,' Thor gasped, still in agony. 'He is the Unicorn-born of the Prophecy.' The dragon's words caught up with him. 'Ygrivaine- Morpugra, then that is what the Prophecy means? I am supposed to rule?'
'Yes,' the dragon admitted quietly. 'That is what the Prophecy means.'
'But…but I can't rule,' Thor protested. 'I – I can't – I'm not good enough – I'm too young…'
'The last Dragon Child was younger than you," Ygrivaine-Morpugra chided him. 'And you have your Unicorn-born beside you to aid you.'
'But he is gone,' Thor whispered. 'Voldemort took him – tell me, Ygrivaine- Morpugra, is he in the Dragon-realms? Is he?' His muscles burned, he almost shrieked with the pain, but he kept his green eyes on the black jewelled gaze of the dragon.
'We do not interfere in your matters, dragonling,' the dragon told him quietly. 'But…' she seemed uneasy at saying this, 'but you *are* the Dragon Child…' Thor urged her on with his eyes – he could not do more, he felt like he was going to throw up. 'Yes. Yes, they are in the eastern most part of the Dragon-realms. Because he has the Unicorn-born, none of us dare to confront and expel the Mage Voldemort. That is all I may tell you.'
'It is more than enough,' Thor managed. 'Thank you, Ygrivaine-Morpugra. I can't express my gratitude.' The dragon gazed at him solemnly for a long moment.
'No, my dragonling,' she said quietly. 'It is I that should thank you.' She raised herself from the ground, and then made the dragon equivalent to a obeisance. Thor stared. Such a motion was, for a dragon, reserved for the most high. It was the most honouring thing a dragon could do. Ygrivaine-Morpugra looked up at him again. 'Until I see you in the Dragon- realms, my king, stay safe.' Thor gazed in shock at her as she spread her leathery wings, flapped them once, and disappeared.
"Harry! Harry! HARRY!" Hermione was screaming. Thor blinked, then turned his head, noting that the pain was fading from his limbs. "Harry, what the hell was that!"
"I should like to know that too!" Zodiac said harshly from the entrance to the Chamber. "You left that entrance open, Thor," he told the younger Mage. "What in blazes do you think you were doing, Summoning a dragon in a place as magically mixed-up as this?"
"I didn't," Thor rasped. He pulled himself to his feet, facing away from them for a moment as he made sure that he could actually stand, then looked at them. Zodiac took one look at him and stepped backwards in disbelief. "I didn't Summon her, she just came. She says that I've set the Change in motion, for me and for Draco." He carefully stretched first one arm, then the other, as the pain was replaced by stiffness.
"The Change," Zodiac repeated. "Mother of all dragons, Harry…Thor…you've begun the Change." Seraph, who had been just behind him, stepped forward now, her eyes firmly fixed on Thor's.
"My king," she said formally. "I greet you." Then she knelt, the greatest show of trust, respect, and honour a Mage could give, the equivalent of the dragon obeisance. Thor blinked.
Then Zodiac followed Seraph's example and knelt. "My king," he echoed. "I greet you."
Hermione looked disbelievingly between all the Mages. Then she looked at Thor, and she too knelt, for although she did not know the meaning of what had just happened, she understood the significance of it. Thor gazed at all three of them, then a strange smile flitted over his face.
"Yes," he murmured, more to himself than to anyone else. "Yes. I am the Dragon King."
Far away, in eastern parts of the Dragon-realms, Voldemort stiffened in pain. Draco, tied up behind him on the ground, felt it too, but he did not feel pain. He felt as if he was awakening from a dream, and only now was he in the real world. He knew who he was, what he was meant to do…and he knew that Thor was now the Dragon King.
"So," Voldemort hissed. "I greatly wonder who this Dragon King is." He slowly turned to face Draco; Draco met his gaze evenly and without fear. "Perhaps," Voldemort mused. "You will tell me." He advanced on Draco with slow, deliberate steps, and Draco reached out in his mind to Thor.
*Help me* he called silently. *Help me, Harry.*
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
To be continued.