Chapter 28: Dragons and My First Bulgarian Christmas with the Krums

I would have panicked, actually I did panic, regarding the fact that Viktor and I were the only people inside a large apartment in the city of Sofia, Bulgaria. My very (thankfully) logical brain thought otherwise. I mean, I do trust Viktor and I know that he would not do anything rash, but my imagination zoomed into an overdrive. My theory was, never leave two (possibly) extremely hormonal people alone. It was snowing in Bulgaria, and all I wanted to do was snuggle up next to Viktor in a comfortable couch while sipping hot chocolate (spiked with a bit of Firewhiskey for warmth).

"Hey, Viktor…" Ianthé looked at the man beside her whose face was hidden behind a book.

"Hmm?"

"What do you think about going to Romania? Even for a day. I can Side-Along Apparate with you to go there."

"What do you want to do there?" Viktor put down the book he was reading.

"I want to meet the dragon that almost roasted you alive…" Ianthé's eyes sparkled, "Nikki's dad has a dragon business there. I was just curious about what would a dragon colony look like."

"We can go there during the day after tomorrow."

Ianthé looked at Viktor intently, "Really? You mean it?"

Viktor smiled, "Anything to make you happy…"

"Thank you thank you thank you! You don't know how much this means to me!" Ianthé hugged Viktor tightly.

Dinner with him was always romantic. Merlin bless the house elves for the wonderful dishes they always conjure. What I always feared vanished as Viktor acted the part of a perfect gentleman the day I arrived. Thank heavens we're just on the "kissing each other shyly" part of our relationship.

"Ianthé!" Nikki ran towards her best friend.

It was the twenty-third of December. As promised, Viktor and Ianthé went to Romania to visit Nikki and her family.

"It's nice to see you again," Viktor shook Nikki's hand.

"Want to meet your former opponent?" Nikki said in a jolly manner.

They walked to wards an extremely large clearing over the mountains. There was an ear-splitting roar. They stopped to see a greenish-brown scaly dragon with a seemingly-short snout.

"So, she's still here?"

"Actually, she was bred in captivity. It was her nesting phase that's why she became so nasty during the tournament."

Ianthé held Viktor's hand tightly as the dragon breathed fire near them.

"Nikki, your father wants to see you! It's about Procyon!"

A red-haired muscular man sprinted towards them. He had a shiny burn mark on his arm.

"No, not again! What did she do?"

"She tried to tend on a Fireball's babies. The real mother looked affronted and attacked her. She's now hiding in the Cathedral cave system, it's not far from here."

"Oh dear," Nikki sighed, "By the way, Charlie, this is Ianthé, my best friend. Ianthé, this is Charlie Weasley."

Charlie shook Ianthé's hand, "Pleasure to meet you…" He suddenly took notice the man who's with Ianthé.

"Oh, that's Viktor Krum."

"THE Viktor Krum?"

Nikki nodded.

"Like the youngest player during the World Cup?"

Viktor smiled and offered his hand, "That would be me, yes."

Charlie was awestruck, "Nice to meet you. Hey, isn't that Minnie, the Swedish Short snout from the Triwizard tournament?"

"Yeah, Ianthé wanted to see her."

"So, she's with him?"

"Yes, and if you ever blabbered it to anyone else, I'll have to sic the Horntail on you…"

Charlie looked affronted, "Hey, do I look like a big mouth? I can keep secrets, thanks."

Nikki rolled her eyes, "Come on, let's find Procyon."

They walked for several minutes until they reached a large cave. When they entered the cave, they reached a large pond reflecting sunlight.

Ianthé gasped, "Is that a dragon?" She pointed towards what seemed to be a large boulder breathing steam.

"Procyon!" Nikki ran to the dragon, "What are you doing here, girl?"

The dragon roared in a docile manner, as if apologizing.

"It would be okay…" Nikki touched the dragon's scaly skin, "Just mind your own business next time!"

The dragon puffed a bit of smoke.

"Now, come on!"

Procyon crouched lowly. Charlie rode on her back and handed out his hand. Nikki grabbed him, and he pulled her towards him.

"Hey, you two, come on!"

Viktor rode and handed out his hand to Ianthé. She climbed up to the dragon's back.

"This is absolutely crazy, Nikki!"

Ianthé held Viktor's waist tightly. The four of them are still on Procyon's back. The dragon swooped down a deep ravine. Ianthé gasped.

"Seems like Procyon wants to take us on a tour!" Charlie laughed.

"Oh no, oh no, oh no!" Ianthé panicked, "No way!"

Viktor laughed, "Where's your wild spirit?"

Soon, they landed on a meadow thickly covered with snow. There was a large house on the top of the hill.

As they entered the house, "Nikki, have you coaxed that dragon of yours to return here?"

A large muscular man, who reminded Ianthé of his Uncle Alfonse, came down the staircase.

"Yes, Dad. She gave us a tour of the whole valley. This is Ianthé Herze, my best friend."

Ianthé handed out her hand, Nikki's father shook it, "Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Hadfield."

"So you're Alex's daughter, eh?"

Ianthé nodded.

"Good man, good man. Make yourselves at home. Charlie!"

"Sir?" Charlie walked towards Mr. Hadfield.

"Let's give Mr. Krum here a real man's welcome."

Charlie smiled at Ianthé and Viktor.

"Go with them. I'll be fine here," Ianthé prodded Viktor. He walked to where Charlie and Mr. Hadfield were standing. They proceeded to the sitting room.

"Come on, I'll introduce you to my mum."

Nikki and Ianthé walked to the kitchen.

"Ah, my dear, you're back." Mrs. Hadfield was standing amidst two house elves carrying pots and dishes.

"Mum, remember Ianthé?"

Ianthé smiled at Mrs. Hadfield.

"My dear, you have grown! How's Margeaux? Is she well?"

"Very well, Mrs. Hadfield."

"I remember those days when we were in Hogwarts ourselves…" Mrs. Hadfield stared wistfully onto space. She sighed, "Those were the days…"

"Mum, we'll just be going to my room to have some girly time amongst ourselves…"

"Oh… yes yes! I bet you girls have some bit of catching up to do… I'll just be here if you need anything…"

"That's really weird…. She usually doesn't like house work…. She always delegated them to the house elves…"

"Maybe because it's the holidays and she wanted to make up for it… You know… for the lost Mum-moments…" Ianthé smiled.

"Back to the other news… What's up with you and Viktor?"

"When I got to Sofia, I learned that we were the only ones who are staying in their house there. It was mortifying at first."

"Mortifying! How bad could it get? I mean, you should be happy because you two were left alone…. Unsupervised…. If you get my drift…" Nikki winked at Ianthé as they plopped down on Nikki's bed.

"That's what frightens me."

"Oh no… Not the convent mode again!"

"What convent mode?"

"You sound like you were stuck on a convent all your life! This is your chance, the opportunity for both of you to explore things more than snogging!" Nikki squealed.

Ianthé made a face that was between disgust and hilarity, "You're crazy, you now that?"

"Try growing up with red-blooded males around you. Let's see if you don't pick up a thing or two."

"You learned that from Charlie? That's disgusting!"

"Of course, not Charlie! He's every inch of a gentleman when I'm around! The other guys who work for my father. They told me because I needed to know those kind of stuff…. That's according to them…"

"It's just that I'm not ready for that stage of our relationship. I'm just fifteen!"

"So am I! Listen, maybe I'm just excited and happy for you…. I have never been in a relationship myself so I need to know what it's like…. to be with somebody you really like…"

"Well, you feel very warm inside even if it's winter and snowing outside. When he kisses me, I have this happy bubble in my stomach that doesn't go away for hours. His every gesture makes me giddy."

"And you told me you don't want any part on the Giggly Girls Club… You're obviously one of us! Admit it, Ianthé!"

"As much as I want the world to know that I'm in love with this great guy and will be marrying him soon, I can't. There are complications in our relationship…"

Nikki gave a sympathetic smile, "I understand."

"I just wish this gigantic problem regarding You-Know-Who would soon be over."

Nikki patted her back, "Come on, let's go downstairs."

Viktor and I got back from Romania after dinner. He told me they had a bit of a drink in the sitting room, shared a few thoughts regarding dragons and other dangerous creatures. He told me that he wants to invest in Mr. Hadfield's business.

"What time are they arriving?" Ianthé asked Viktor hurriedly as she put finishing touches on the dining table. It was Christmas Eve and Mr. and Mrs. Krum are coming over.

"About seven thirty, I think. I told them to come a bit later so we could buy some more time."

"Kiki?"

A house elf ran towards Ianthé, "Yes, Miss? Do you needs anything, Miss?"

"Please don't put the crème on the pie yet. Do it when I call up for dessert. The crème has to be cold."

"Yes, Miss," the house elf ran back to the kitchen.

"Fifi?"

Pop! A house elf materialized in front of her.

"Miss?"

"Is everything ready for the master bedroom?"

"Yes, Miss. The bed linens are already starched."

"Thank you. Kindly go back upstairs, I think Viktor's shirt needs a bit more ironing."

The house elf bowed.

"No, no… When there are no one else but me here, please don't bow…"

The house elf bowed once more, "Yes, Miss."

Ianthé sighed.

The house came to a flurry that day because I was pretty nervous to see Viktor's parents once again. I want to prove to them that I'm not another spoiled rich girl, and I can manage an entire household flawlessly. Where else could I learn such things? From my mother, of course. I realized what she's doing in the Herze mansion is much demanding compared to this. I'm beginning to appreciate her more and more.

Dong! Dong! Dong!

The house elf went to the door and opened it.

"Master! Mistress!" the house elf bowed lowly, her ears almost touching the ground.

Viktor had his arm around Ianthé's shoulder. His hand squeezed her shoulder as a sign of assurance.

"Mr. Krum, Mrs. Krum! How was your trip?" Ianthé went to them and kissed their cheeks.

"Muggle transportation are not as bad as you think, though not as fast as Apparating."

"Father, where are your trunks? Ianthé has arranged the master bedroom for you."

"Oh, we're going back to the plantation after dinner."

Ianthé looked at Viktor. Oh no! Major hyperventilation here! Water! I need to lie down!

"We might be disturbing your stay here," Mrs. Krum placed her hand on Ianthé's shoulder.

"No, not at all, Mrs. Krum. In fact, I'm delighted to spend Christmas with you."

"The table is ready, Miss!" Kiki appeared near the door of the dining room.

"Did you make this dessert?" Mrs. Krum asked as she bit down on the fruit tart Ianthé prepared.

"My mother used to make them during the summers. I modified them a bit for Christmas. When I arrived, I soaked the dates, raisins and cherries on a bottle of Muggle Scotch Whiskey. That's why we have this warm feeling when we eat this fruit tart."

"Let's share recipes when you get back here for the summer holidays."

Ianthé smiled. So far, so good.

They bade us goodbye after dinner. I believe I caught Mr. Krum giving Viktor a wink and a nudge. I really feel close to Mrs. Krum after conversing with her about my future plans after Hogwarts. This is my OWLs year so I needed to choose what subject I would have to take on NEWTs level. Viktor's mother discussed to me the finer points in running a rose plantation and tending on some other magical plants. I did well in Herbology so I think I would help her run the business after graduating. I don't know why I plan my future life this early. Am I really still in denial that You-Know-Who is back? All these thoughts came over me as Christmas night progressed. I wished, wished to Father Christmas, that all would be well and You-Know-Who would be defeated once and for all.