Camelot, England – 957 AD
From across the courtyard, Sirius watched the little dance the Doctor was performing in relation to Hermione. He shook his head in amusement as the Doctor's party rode out the gates to check on the village of Bretton. "It seems Merlin is almost as awkward around women as my godson," Sirius said just loud enough for Harry and Ginny to hear. Ginny started laughing and after a moment, Harry joined in.
"Dad has been alone for so long, I think he he's forgotten what to do in a romantic relationship," Ginny explained to Sirius. She gave Harry a quick kiss to show Sirius she didn't suffer from the same handicap. It was Sirius' turn to chuckle.
Sirius led Harry and Ginny to a small stone shed and opened the door by pointing his staff at it and muttering, "Alohomora." The door sprang open showing several broomsticks leaning against the far wall. "Since it's just going to be us, I thought we could take the fast way," he said proudly. "They're no Firebolts, but they work a bit better than the training brooms Hogwarts provided," he stated. "I had to go all the way to Jordan to find a wizard who knew how to enchant broomsticks. He gave me these for free after I made some suggestions on how to get more speed and stability out of the ones he had been making," he confided. Ginny decided not to bring up temporal paradox when she remembered reading that a broom enchanter in Jordan had made a revolutionary leap forward around 996 AD.
The three of them each chose a broom and walked out of the shed. They were met by King Arthur, Godric, and Salazar. The boys were dressed like squires in their family colors - Godric in flashy red and gold and Salazar in black and green. Godric was holding a bundle wrapped in cloth in front of him proudly. The King motioned for Harry to step closer. "I take pride in making sure my knights are well equipped," he told Harry. Arthur gestured towards the boys. "Every knight needs a squire and I think these lads would do quite well considering the abilities you all share," he stated. Salazar stepped forward and stood next to Sirius, a smile on the young man's face. In response, Sirius smiled back and put his hand on the Future Founder's shoulder. Harry and Ginny watched in shock and had to shake their heads to clear them.
Arthur watched the byplay and made a note to ask the Black Knight about it later. He reached over to Godric and took the bundle. The cloth fell away to reveal a sword with a thin, gleaming blade. Blood red rubies were mounted at the ends of the crossguard and the pommel. Harry and Ginny recognized the sword in an instant. Almost against his will, Harry stepped forward and took the sword that would later save his life when he battled the basilisk. He turned it slightly and the perfect blade reflected the morning sun. Godric stepped forward and belted the scabbard around Harry's waist.
"I won this sword in a card game with the Goblin King," Arthur boasted. "He told me that when I finally decided which of my knights to give it to, he would have its maker engrave the owner's name on the blade," he said.
Ginny tried to hide her grin as she looked at the sword. Harry caught her eye and winked. They both knew who the true owner would end up being. Harry sheathed the sword and mounted his broom stick which hovered in the air. Ginny and Sirius mounted their brooms a split second behind him. Godric smiled for a bit and then frowned as he asked Harry, "Where do I sit my lord?"
After a fruitless argument with Godric and Salazar, the two knights agreed to bring the boys along. On the flight to the forest, Godric sat behind Harry, shouting in glee. The red haired boy held out his hands, trying to touch the clouds they were passing through. In contrast, Salazar was holding onto Sirius with a death grip.
Salazar peeked out from behind Sirius' back and instantly regretted it. Ginny was doing barrel rolls around them, teasing her boyfriend. "I think I'm going to be sick," Salazar moaned.
"Not on my bloody armor you won't!" Sirius shouted back. To help ease Salazar's stomach he gently descended out of the clouds so they could see the horizon. Ahead of them lay what would eventually be referred to as the Forbidden Forest. Ginny dove out of the clouds at an alarming speed and then pulled up next to Sirius. Harry wasn't far behind her. The three older magic users scanned the forest for any signs of danger. Sirius pointed down to the western edge of the forest. "Looks like the villagers are at it again," he shouted over the wind. Harry and Ginny nodded and the three of them raced towards the villagers, earning them a moan from Salazar and another whoop of joy from Godric.
They were almost to the village mob when Harry suddenly broke formation and dove towards another section of the forest. "Harry?" Sirius shouted after his godson.
Ginny moved to intercept Sirius before he could follow Harry. "Harry's the best seeker the school has ever had," she reminded Sirius. "He must have seen something we missed," she told him. "If Harry didn't think he could manage it by himself, he would have told us to follow him," she stated. "Let's take care of the villagers and then catch up with him," she suggested.
Sirius ground his teeth in frustration, but nodded anyway. "He's as reckless as his father ever was," he muttered. With his free hand, he pointed towards an area of the forest about half a kilometer in front of the advancing mob. "Let's land there and cut them off," he told Ginny.
Ginny happily agreed formed up on Sirius' left side. Sirius and Ginny put their brooms into a steep dive and pulled up at the last moment to avoid hitting the forest floor. Sirius hopped off his broom just in time to avoid Salazar's vomit. "Take the broom and hide behind those trees over there," he instructed Salazar who nodded weakly. Once Salazar was safely hidden, Sirius pulled out his staff and planted the end of it in the dirt. Ginny drew her wand and stood shoulder to shoulder with Padfoot. They didn't have to wait long before the leading edge of the mob made it through the thick underbrush to stand in front of them. Sirius sneered at the filth encrusted man the others looked at when they saw the Black Knight blocking their way.
"Stand aside knight. This doesn't concern you!" the leader shouted. Several of his men shouted in agreement. The mob simply ignored Ginny.
Sirius held up his staff and pointed it the mob. "This forest has been given to the magical creatures of Britain. Villagers are forbidden from entering here without the consent of the King!" he shouted. "Since it was the King who sent me to stop you, I doubt you have received his permission," he said coldly. "Therefore, I judge that you are trespassing on the King's land and must leave at once or face the consequences," he warned.
The mob leader matched Sirius' sneer. "There are 3 score of us and but one wisp of a girl and a wizard to stop us!" he shouted back, making the last word "wizard" like a slur. "Now if the king had sent Merlin to stop us, we might have had to reconsider. As it is, you two don't scare us!" he challenged.
Sirius looked over at Ginny rolled his eyes, causing her to giggle. He pointed his staff directly at the leader and whispered, "REDUCIO BRACCAE." Sirius smiled as the spell he had perfected on a young Severus Snape caused the leaders leggings to shrink dramatically, especially in the crotch area.
The leader's hands went to his groin and his eyes rolled back into his head as he toppled over. "Kill them, you fools!" he squeaked. He thrashed around on the ground, trying to remove the constricting clothing. The more he struggled, the tighter the leggings became.
"My turn," Ginny stated with a smile before running to meet the mob head on. As soon as a villager was in reach, she grabbed him by the wrist, planted his hand on her hip, and stepped backwards and to the side. The villager was yanked off of his feet and thrown into a tree. His bloody face slid down the tree, leaving a couple of teeth embedded in the bark. Ginny continued turning and struck out with her left foot at another villager who had made the wrong choice in advancing on her. A loud, painful pop was heard by everyone as she dislocated his knee.
When the rest of the villagers wisely gave her plenty of space, she smiled at them. Many of the men would take that frightening image to their graves. Ginny pointed her wand where the villagers were packed tightly and shouted, " TEMPESTIA FRIGIDUM!"
The front rank of the mob was knocked off their feet and tossed around like ragdolls by the sudden howling, artic wind. The mob members still standing were only able to make out Ginny's emerald green dress and flaming red hair through the impromptu blizzard. A frightened villager pointed at her and yelled over the wind, "The sorcerer has called a flame haired demon to assist him! We must fall back to the church to gather the holy relics to fight her!" He bent down and helped his fallen leader to his feet. Due to the leader not being able to walk without further damage to his family jewels, a second villager came forward and helped carry him out of the forest.
When the last villager fled from sight, Sirius walked up next to Ginny, slightly disturbed by how easily she handled the men. "Harry lets you win most of your arguments, doesn't he?" he asked her.
Ginny smiled sweetly at Sirius as she turned around to find her broom. "Of course he does," she replied.
"Smart boy," Sirius remarked.
********DrW********
Motion in a clearing drew Harry's attention as they raced towards the villagers. He saw a huge, three headed ogre advancing on a centaur colt who had an arrow sticking out of his left flank. The ogre was at least ten meters tall and wearing a grubby kilt made from all different types of skins. Without warning, Harry changed directions and dove to the clearing.
"Look what we have here, Snot," the first ogre head said to the second.
"It looks like a tasty treat, Phlegm," the second head replied.
The third head shook in dismay. "Will you two quick blabbering and help me kill it all ready," it told the other two. "Every time you two start going on like this, our dinner gets away!" he complained.
"Oh shut up, Wart," the first head replied. "The colt has an arrow sticking out of 'em. It's not like he's going to be able to run very fast," he countered.
Harry came in fast and slid sideways above the ground to scrub off momentum. The ogre took a step back in surprise. "See, what did I tell you? Every bloody time…," the third head moaned and rubbed his face with the arm he controlled.
Harry jumped off the broomstick and let it carry Godric a bit farther out of the ogre's range. He ran to stand over the young centaur and pulled out his wand. Pointing his wand at the ogre, he yelled, "PETRIFICUS TOTALUS!" A blast of magic energy played over the ogre's body and then faded away.
The first head ran his hand over his chest mockingly. "That tickled a bit," he chuckled.
Harry cursed himself for forgetting the fact that ogres were impervious to hexes. He had only skimmed that chapter once he learned ogres were extinct by his time and therefore wouldn't be a threat to him or his friends. Harry drew the sword Arthur had given him and tried to look intimidating. He realized it wasn't working when all three heads smiled at him while it uprooted a tree to use as a make-shift club. "Bugger!" Harry cursed as he ducked and rolled under the tree as it swung through the space he had recently occupied.
"Stop moving! I hate it when my dinner moves," the second head shouted.
"He's on your side, Phlegm!" the third head warned the first. Harry had finished his roll and knelt next to the ogre's left foot. He adjusted his grip on the sword and drove the sword into the monster's big toe.
"OOOOuch!" the first head screamed. It let go of its end of the tree and picked up its foot to get it away from the little human with the painful stinger.
The sudden shifting of the weight of the tree and only standing on one foot caused the ogre to fall onto its back and let go of the tree completely. Remembering back to his first year at Hogwarts, Harry drew his wand and pointed it at the tree. "WINGARDIUM LEVIOSA!" he shouted. The tree rose into the air and pivoted so it was perpendicular to the fallen ogre. Harry had the tree rise into the air for a little while longer before letting it fall. The tree struck all three heads across the bridge of their noses, knocking them out.
Harry waited a moment to make sure the ogre was truly out before racing over to the injured centaur. Godric walked slowly into the clearing, awestruck. "Sir Harry, that was amazing!" he cheered. "You weren't afraid at all," he gushed.
Harry looked over his shoulder as he walked over to the centaur. "Are you kidding me?" he asked rhetorically. "I was terrified," he admitted. Harry watched Godric as he tried to figure out what Harry was saying. Without thinking, Harry recited the words etched into the stone above the doorway leading out of the Gryffindor common room, "True courage isn't the lack of fear, it's acknowledging you're afraid and doing what needs to be done in spite of it." He knelt next to the colt and placed his sword on the ground next to him, letting the colt know he wasn't there to hurt him. Harry looked him over for any other injuries other than the arrow sticking out of his hind quarter. The dark hair of his equine half was matted in several places with blood, but there were no other serious wounds.
Harry pulled out a vial containing a thick, red fluid. Since it seemed he couldn't go a week without being injured, Hermione and Ginny had insisted he start carrying around one of Madam Pomfrey's first aid potions. It would staunch most bleeding, giving the user extra time to get proper medical help. He put his hand the centaur's human shoulder. "My name is Harry, I have a potion that will stop the bleeding," he stated. "I'm going to pull out the arrow and pour this on the wound," he explained.
"Will it hurt?" the colt asked.
"Quite a bit actually, but it goes away after a few minutes," Harry admitted.
The colt looked Harry in the eyes, trying to read the soul of this peculiar human. Until that moment, he had only known of two types of humans - those who ignored them and those who actively hunted them. Having one offer to use such a precious potion on him was a new experience. The colt looked even harder and slipped into the star gazing trance his race used to see into the Timestreams. He blinked several times when he saw eddies and swirls around this wizard, marking him as one who was out of his original Time. The colt came back to the here and now and nodded his head, gritting his teeth against the pain that was coming.
Harry grabbed the arrow firmly and pulled straight out. He tossed the arrow to the side and uncorked the vial. Holding the young centaur's hand in support, he poured the healing potion into the wound. Harry grimaced as well as the colt squeezed his hand in pain. Noises behind them, made Harry turn his head to see what was happening.
The three headed ogre had regained consciousness and threw the offending tree far into the forest. "I'm going to tear you into little pieces with my bare hands!" the middle head swore.
Godric saw that his knight was at a serious tactical disadvantage. He swallowed his fear and dove towards Harry. Instinctively, he grabbed the sword Arthur had given Harry and stood between the monster and his knight. The sword felt like it was made for him and that gave him a boost of confidence. "You're a fool, ogre," he taunted. "You are alive only because Sir Harry Potter wished it!" he claimed.
The ogre laughed at the puny human. "You say his name as if I should be afraid of it," the head on the left chuckled.
Godric smirked as he stepped closer to the ogre. "I sincerely doubt you would have ever heard his name before, but I'm certain you know the name of the lord he travels with," he stated. Taking the bait, the ogre leaned forward to hear who this mystery lord was. "Sir Harry travels with Lord Merlin and is the favorite of Lord Merlin's daughter," Godric explained, taking two more steps to close the gap with the enemy.
"Merlin?" all three heads said at once. The momentary pause caused by this stunning news gave Godric the opening he was looking for. He focused all of his untrained magical powers and threw Harry's sword. His will drove the sword into the ogre's chest, piercing its heart. The middle head looked down at the sword sticking out of it and muttered, "Oh bugger!" The monster toppled backwards as it died.
Godric stepped onto the ogre and pulled the sword out of its chest. He wiped the blood off of the blade with a patch of the ogre's kilt. Turning to look at Harry, he said, "Sorry, my lord. I know I shouldn't have taken your sword without your permission, but I didn't see any other way."
Harry laughed at Godric's fear of being punished for taking a knight's weapon. He undid the belt holding the scabbard and tossed it to Godric. "Keep it, it's yours," he ordered.
Godric looked like he had been smacked with a bludger. "Are you serious, my lord?" he inquired.
Harry grinned at Godric. "I'm positive," he replied. "All though, I might need to borrow it sometime in the future," he added cryptically.
"Of course, my lord, whenever you need it, it shall be there for you," Godric promised, unknowingly binding the sword to future Gryffindors.
The colt struggling to get back on its feet drew the others' attention. Once he was upright with Harry's help, he cocked his head to the side as he listened to the forest noises. "I have to leave. My herd is coming this way and I don't think they'll listen when I say you helped me," he said sadly. He walked slowly into the forest to intercept his herd. After taking a few steps, he stopped and turned his torso so he could look back at the wizard who had saved his life. "My name is Firenze and I hope that someday I can repay my debt to you, Sir Harry Potter," he said solemnly and then trotted off deeper into the forest.