Here's another update for you guys. Only 8 days after my last update too.
Harry stepped out of the house to find the dragon finishing off a deer. He hissed a greeting, not wanting to startle the blind creature. He grinned when she let out a trilling rumble to him.
Draco had swiftly named the dragon Saphira, which she seemed to like. Harry supposed that the goblins hadn't dignified their guard dragon with a name. Why would they? But Draco had declared her to be a perfectly lovely, clever dragon that deserved a beautiful name.
Saphira favored Harry, and Draco by extension, but she was wary of the others. Nevertheless, she'd made no aggressive move toward Harry's friends and family. Despite the reputation of dragons, she displayed loyalty and a sort of sweetness to her rescuers. For that, Harry was determined to love and care for her.
When Viktor, Adrien and Warrington had come by the house they'd been understandably startled to see a dragon. And then Adrien had laughed for ten minutes over the fact that Harry had basically adopted a blind albino dragon. "Because of course that's a thing that Harry would do," he'd chortled, delighted with the situation.
Harry knelt in the grass, after cleaning up the blood from Saphira's meal. "I wish I could understand you," Harry told her, parseltongue slipping out easily. He stroked over her nose as her unseeing eyes blinked slowly at him. "Maybe you could teach me. Would that be alright?"
Saphira nudged against his chest with her nose, her breath warm even through his shirt.
Dean stepped out of the house and paused on the front steps to watch Harry and his dragon. Shaking his head, he walked toward them and called out a greeting in an effort to avoid startling the dragon. He stopped at Harry's side. "Draco said that Remus will be here soon so you'll need to be ready to go," he said, reaching out tentatively to pat Saphira's head. He smiled when she groaned and moved her head closer.
"We're ready," Harry told him with a nod. He stood up straight and met Dean's gaze. "Any news from Hogwarts?"
"Seamus writes to me all the time. It's- It's pretty bad Harry," Dean muttered, looking away. "There are two Death Eaters working as professors and they're happy to hurt anyone that doesn't fall in line. Neville is constantly covered in cuts and bruises. Snape mostly lets the Carrows do their thing to keep his cover, but he's been slipping healing potions to the Deltas. Pansy, Astoria and Daphne are keeping their cover in public, but Seamus said that they're gutted about standing by and watching people get hurt."
Harry nodded, blinking rapidly as emotional swelled in his chest. "How are the pups?" he asked softly.
Dean sniffled a little. "They miss you," he responded quietly. "They're afraid but they try to be brave. I'm sorry I couldn't be there to help take care of them," he added regretfully.
"No," Harry said firmly. "You needed to be here. I'm glad you're here to look after anyone that needs help and to receive communication from Hogwarts and the teams. In that way, you are helping to take care of them. I really appreciate it," he assured, reaching out to squeeze Dean's shoulder.
Dean nodded, wiping at his eyes. "Thanks Alpha."
A moment later Draco came out of the house followed by the Betas. Their expressions were tense but determined. "We need to head out," Ron said seriously. "I want to be sure that we beat the werewolves to the meeting place."
"Right," Harry sighed. "Let's get moving then," he said, pausing to press a kiss to Draco's lips. Then he turned back to Dean. "Contact the remaining pack at Hogwarts. We need them to locate an artifact from Rowena Ravenclaw. Something significant that might have been turned into a horcrux."
"Of course," Dean replied. "Be safe Alphas. You as well Betas," he added respectfully.
As Dean went back inside, Harry turned and waved his hand, summoning a strange leather bundle from the ground nearby. He'd created a harness and saddle for Saphira to make riding her a little more secure. He'd originally intended the saddle for himself and Draco but, since Hermione was terrified of flying, Draco would be on a broom like the Betas while Hermione would ride Saphira with Harry. If she wanted to hide her face against Harry's back for the entire flight, that was just fine.
They were soon on their way to another remote location. It was a valley nestled between a few mountains. They hid Saphira with some cloaking spells and the dragon stayed still and quiet. The Betas stationed themselves just inside the tree line, ready to show themselves when needed. Remus and Sirius arrived a short time later, exchanging tense smiles with Harry and Draco.
Before long, they heard some distant popping sounds which indicated that people were apparating near by. Soon they could see figures approaching the dim light of the swiftly setting sun. Harry swallowed hard when he counted and realized that there were twenty five people making their way toward them. Twenty five werewolves.
"Oh shit," Draco muttered under his breath, making Sirius laugh.
"Easy pup," Sirius murmured. "Werewolves can smell fear. Or maybe they makes people piss their pants, and that's what they smell."
"What the hell Sirius?" Draco snapped, forgetting to keep his voice down.
Ron could be heard snorting with laughter from the safety of the treeline.
Harry shushed them, his eyes facing forward but an amused grin on his face.
Finally, the werewolves were close enough to converse while still keeping a wary distance. They all looked tense and wary, their clothing a bit ragged. Some of them looked practically feral. The life of a werewolf was not an easy one. Harry was grateful that Remus' existence had become so much more comfortable. It hurt to think of Remus so anxious and poor.
"Well, Lupin?" a man with long, dark hair prompted gruffly. "What do you want from us?
"As I said at our last meeting," Remus began, keeping his voice even and calm, "I believe we can make life better for you."
"With an Alpha," another man growled, tugging at his filthy shirt absently. "Why would we want to submit to this- little boy and his pretty friend?"
"Harry and I are of age," Draco said, a bit offended.
"Still just a whelp," another werewolf retorted.
"They can help you," Remus said before Draco could argue. "Yes, they are young, but they've proven themselves to be strong, capable alphas. You need allies."
"We have a place with the Dark Lord," someone said, though it was dark enough that Harry wasn't sure of who had spoken. "We'd be mental to side against him."
"Voldemort only wants to take advantage of you," Remus argued. "He doesn't care about the well-being of werewolves. His power is all that matters. He'll use your strength to destroy the world we know."
"Sounds like you lot are trying to do the same thing."
"This is different," Harry said firmly, finally speaking up. "Obviously we want you on our side. But, we also want your lives to be better. We can help you be more docile and controlled during the full moon. Less pain with-"
"We'd tear you to shreds," someone laughed humorlessly. "Not everyone can afford to buy Wolfsbane potion for every full moon."
"We can help with that too," Draco said. "We've got a batch started already."
"Just let us show you that we can help," Harry added. He nodded to Draco and they swiftly transformed into the wolves. They shook themselves and stretched languidly, enjoying their animagus forms. Behind them, the Betas emerged from the trees, already in wolf form. As one, they approached the werewolves slowly.
"Just remain still," Remus urged the werewolves. "If you don't threaten them, they will do no harm." He watched in awe as the wolves meandered through the crowd of men, pausing to sniff at some.
Even with a bit of distance between them, Remus could feel the warm pulse of magic from Orion and Centauri. He had to remind himself to stay in place when all he wanted was lay down at rest with their power soothing his senses. He glanced at Sirius, finding that his husband looked alert but blissfully calm.
One man dropped to his knees before Alpha Orion. As the wolf's green eyes settled on him, he bowed his head meekly, leaving himself unguarded and vulnerable. Orion snuffled at his neck before licking over his hair.
Remus cupped his hands over his mouth as ten more knelt in the grass, looking overwhelmed. He certainly understood how they felt. Alphas Orion and Centauri radiated a calm, soothing sort of power. Even outside of the full moon, some part of the werewolf within felt raw and unsettled. The Alphas quieted that part of the mind and provided a sense of protection.
"How are you doing this?" one woman asked, from her crouched position in front of Centauri. His silver eyes peered intently at her before the white wolf turned to look expectantly at Sirius and Remus.
"I call it their pack magic," Sirius said helpfully. "We can't really explain how they've managed, but they have a deep connection with their own magics and with those they consider pack. Their power sort of flows out to touch those susceptible to it."
"Like werewolves," Remus added. "I hadn't believed it either until they came to me during the full moon. I was able to sleep, fully transformed, in a room with the Alphas and two other teenage wizards who were not animagi at the time. There were no injuries at all. And I recovered more quickly."
"Why are you doing this?" asked a man that looked to be in his mid-forties. "What do you gain from helping us? The dark lord already has some werewolves on his side. Why would Harry Potter want to team up with werewolves?"
Harry returned to his human form and looked down at the man. "If you're with us, then you're not siding with Voldemort," he said reasonably. "And one of my fathers is a werewolf. He benefits if life is made better for your kind when all this is over." He sighed, stepping back to Draco who was human again as well. "I can't make you fight with us. I'd never force that on anyone. I just ask that you not fight against us. In return, we can make your lives a little better."
The Betas returned to human form, surprising the werewolves. They turned to the Alphas expectantly, earning approving nods.
"That it then?" One of the men stood up. He was a large muscular man with deep scars on his neck and face. He was eyeing the teens suspiciously. "Not gonna make threats?"
"No," Harry replied simply.
"We were only here to offer you an alternative," Draco told them. "Voldemort's plan for werewolves is to have one more way to terrorize the wizarding world. If that's the life you prefer, there's nothing we can do. But, if you want to take back some part of your humanity we are willing to help you. You need only ask."
"And not fight on Voldemort's side," Ron put in. "Obviously."
"We'll give you time to consider," Harry said. "If you choose us, you may meet us here in three days time."
"And before any of you consider trying to trap Harry," Sirius said with a wicked grin,"you should know that he's got another weapon."
Harry smirked and flicked his fingers toward the trees, cancelling the charms that had been concealing Saphira. Feeling his magic, she stretched her wings and shifted on her feet with a grumble. She growled at the startled shrieks from the werewolves, her head turning toward them with a snarl. Harry spoke to her in parseltongue, unnerving the werewolves even further.
"He has a dragon."
"He speaks parseltongue to it."
"How the hell did Potter get that bloody thing to sit still so long?"
Harry chuckled as he walked back to Saphira and climbed up her scales to the saddle. He reached down and pulled Hermione up as well while the other mounted their brooms. "Three days," Harry repeated loudly. "Give it some thought." With that, he hissed again and Saphira opened her wings to carry them back to headquarters.
Three days later, eighteen werewolves returned to join Harry.
With their werewolf plan underway, the Pack returned their focus to the horcruxes. Harry had set the goblet aside with the locket, so now they needed the object from Rowena Ravenclaw. Hopefully the group still at Hogwarts had some ideas. It seemed that a trip to the school would be needed. They needed to get some basilisk fangs to destroy the horcruxes anyway.
Ron sat at a table in the war room downstairs, carefully going over the Marauder's map. Blaise joined him, watching pensively as Ron made little notes on a piece of parchment. After several moments, the red head glanced up to meet Blaise's eyes. "I want to make sure that I know every passage in the school," Ron explained. "We need to avoid everyone outside of the Pack, especially the Carrows."
Blaise nodded in understanding. "You're really good at this," he commented quietly.
Ron bit the inside of his cheek, staring down at the map absently. It had been a little strange between himself and Blaise. Ever since they'd spent the night at Viktor's house... Ron couldn't help feeling quite guilty about it.
"Listen..." Ron began awkwardly. "I think- I- I have to apologize," he blurted out, making Blaise's eyes widen in surprise. "I really made a mess of things. Things were a little shaky with Viktor and I made it worse, and then we were traveling-" He sighed, scrubbing at his hair with his fingers and leaving it a wild mess. "I started to wonder if maybe we... I wanted-" He flushed, unsure of how to put his thoughts into words.
"Ron?" Blaise asked, feeling breathless and hot.
Ron was now refusing to make eye contact. "We might have been good together," he mentioned, his tone deceptively light. "I started to wonder what that would have been like. We've been really close for a while. And now it's-" He shook his head and sat down heavily in the closest chair, looking miserable.
For a moment, Blaise didn't speak. Then he sat down slowly. "I've had feelings for you for years," he admitted, smiling sadly when Ron's head jerked up. "Since third year, actually. It killed me when you went to the Yule ball with Viktor our fourth year." He bit his lower lip. "And then you kept seeing him. I had to see you kiss him and hold his hand... It felt pretty awful. Sometimes it still does."
Ron looked ready to cry. "I'm so sorry," he whispered. "I sort of thought that you might fancy me, but I had no idea it had been so long. And like an utter bastard, I led you on and toyed with your feelings. I really didn't mean to," he insisted. "Blaise, I like you too. A lot. It's just-"
"It's not enough," Blaise supplied. "You love Viktor." His heart broke when one of Ron's tears slipped free to roll down his cheek. They were best friends and Blaise was determined to not let anything change that. More than anything, he wanted Ron to be happy. With that thought in mind, he walked around the table and pulled Ron up into his arms for a hug.
"I'm so sorry," Ron said, his voice wobbling.
"It's alright," Blaise assured him, his own eyes starting to sting with tears. "We'll be fine." And even though it hurt like hell, Blaise truly believe it.
That evening, Viktor came by to see Ron and Blaise offered the red head a reassuring smile before watching the couple move down the hall for some time alone. It still hurt, and maybe it always would ache a little bit with the what-ifs.
"Are you alright?" Draco asked, appearing at Blaise's side. "I may have accidentally heard part of your chat with Ron earlier," he added, at least having the grace to look somewhat guilty about it.
"I'll be fine," Blaise told him. "I was able to get some closure. And Ron's happily in love. I can't hold that against him."
Draco smiled and patted his friend on the back. Blaise was clever, handsome and funny. There was surely someone out there that was going to adore him and return his loving devotion. Draco had no doubts about that.
"We're proud of you," Draco said gently. "Harry and I know how hard this is for you."
"I deserve someone that loves me back," Blaise commented, turning to meet Draco's gaze. "One day, I'll have that. I'm alright Draco," he insisted. Draco eyed him for a moment before nodding in approval.
They returned to the kitchen to find Harry, Vince and Greg trying to make biscuits. Hermione was off spending some time with Fred, so she wasn't there to tell them to stop making such a huge mess. Because it was definitely a mess. Draco sort of doubted that they'd manage to come with anything edible, but he swallowed down his complaints about the mess.
Harry's hair was covered in flour. His glasses were smudged and something damp and sticky was clinging to his clothing. Vince and Greg looked even messier. But all three were giggling like children as they added ingredients to the mixing bowl. An egg rolled off the counter to hit the floor and splatter everywhere. Harry snorted with laughter, sending Vince and Greg into another round of guffaws.
Blaise shook his head fondly. "And that's the man you plan to marry," he teased, nudging Draco playfully.
"Damn right," Draco agreed with a grin.
