On the Wings of Dragons

by Bobmin356

The Weyr prepares for the step of going public against the backdrop of heightening international tensions and increasingly complex personal issues. And is Britain really secure now that the Ministry has been conquered? Sequel to The Queen Who Fell to Earth. Harry/Hr/OCF

3. Chapter 3

Standard Disclaimer:

Bob watched Alyx pace back and forth, muttering to herself. "What are you doing now?" he asked.

Alyx stopped mid pace and turned to him. "I'm working out plot points. I need to arrange for the evil Harry Potter to offer Prince Draco his who who for ransom, all the while threatening to feed the detached organ to a starved alligator."

"An alligator," Bob exclaimed incredulously. "in Scotland?"

"Of course not silly, Draco is a prince of Slobnovia," she retorted.

Bob arched an eyebrow. "And where is this mythical country?"

"Oh I moved a few countries around. Scotland is now where France is, France is now where Spain was, Spain has taken over Australia and Australia has moved into Canada's slot. Slobnovia is where Scotland used to be because the Scotts couldn't move their castles and Prince Draco needs a castle," Alyx replied airily.

Bob blinked and muttered to himself for a moment. "Scotland to France, France to Spain, Spain to Australia, Australia to Canada... wait a tic! Where did Canada go?"

"Buffalo New York, there aren't that many of them. I thought about letting them have Arizona, but I worried it would endanger the Gila monsters that live there," Alyx said happily. "Gila monsters don't like plaid you see."

"So Slobnovia has alligators?"

Alyx smiled wickedly, "They do now. Oh and don't waste any money at those Florida road side Gator attractions. Someone stole their alligators! Can you believe it?"

Bob shook his head. "What is this world coming to when your alligators aren't safe? Okay so you solved the alligator issue, have you made any progress on your disclaimer?"

Alyx turned and looked at him, her face paling. "Disclaimer?" she squeaked.

"You know, where we tell everyone we don't own Harry Potter or the Dragon Riders of Pern?" Bob prodded with a sinking heart.

"I'll get to it eventually," Alyx said, dismissing it as inconsequential. She had more important things to worry about. Slobnovia needed a native penguin population for the alligators to feed on!

Bob sighed and turned to the audience. "Sorry folks, you'll have to read the chapter without a disclaimer this time."

---

The possibilities are numerous once we decide to act and not react.
- George Bernard Shaw

Happy Smiles Daycare center, Leicester U.K., August 20th...

The pair frowned as they entered the building. It was impossible to ignore the bone chilling effects, nor the sad feelings that swept over them.

The normally smiling receptionist looked up and scowled at the two men. She was in a foul mood and wasn't really interested in dealing with these strangers. She knew the parent of every child who attended daycare, but didn't know either of these men.

"What do you want?" she snapped.

She really couldn't help herself. Though she was unaware of it, dementors had settled on the building roof before the children had arrived and had been affecting everyone in the building since early morning.

One of the men frowned at her behavior, but both knew what was causing it. He reached into his jacket and withdrew a small wallet containing his badge and photo ID. "I am Senior Inspector Hamilton and this is my partner, Inspector Forster. We're with CID, counter terrorist branch. Inform the manager of your facility that I need to speak with her right now."

While they were officially attached to CID Magical Section, the former Auror and Police Inspector felt that a more mundane identification would work better in this case. Both men were wizards and both men knew that death hovered over their heads. Despite being able to cast a patronus charm, they knew that they couldn't hold off the eight dementors on the roof.

It had been decided to evacuate the staff and children using normal methods. The children and adults could have been portkeyed or apparated, but then they would have had to be obliviated and obliviation on small children was dangerous. The younger the child, the more damaging the spell could be to their developing minds.

They had two goals here and they were somewhat in conflict with each other. The first goal was to evacuate the day care center of more than one hundred children and a sizable adult staff. The second goal was to keep the dementors from fleeing. If they scattered it would be harder to find them all.

The young woman blinked in surprise at the man's forceful tone, then she paled, seeing army vehicles pulling into the lot across from the day care center. Her view of the lot across the street through the plate glass doors emphasized the seriousness of the situation. With a trembling hand, she reached for her phone and punched a few buttons.

Outside a dozen army and police vehicles had pulled up and were unloading personnel. From the receptionist's vantage it was clear they were all focused on the building she was in!

Happy Smiles Day Care was a fairly new business in this location, but they had a solid reputation because they were part of a national chain. Because of that reputation, they were usually packed with children and had a long waiting list of parents eager to take advantage of the day care that tried hard to combine learning with fun. This building was typical for the franchise and had children in care ranging in age from eighteen months to five years old.

The receptionist spoke quietly into the phone, then she hung it up. "Inspectors, if you will follow me, please? Mrs. Holcomb said I was bring you straight into her office."

A short gray haired lady looked at the two men entering her office with suspicion. Any bad press would hurt the corporation she worked for, but if she allowed anything to happen to her charges, the public would hang her and destroy Happy Smiles forever.

"Gentlemen, my receptionist says you need to speak with me?" she said in a frosty tone.

Hamilton presented his badge again and her eyes widened. Her husband had been a police officer before he died of a heart attack and she knew an official ID when she saw one.

"Mrs Holcomb, our office has discovered that your center is in terrible danger."

"What? Why haven't I heard." she sputtered.

"Ma'am, please, if you would just look out your window?" said Forster quietly.

Holcomb stood and twisted the rod that opened the blinds to her office. She paled, seeing the army and police vehicles outside. The police were evacuating people from adjoining buildings while the army had already barricaded off the street.

She turned to the two men. "It's a bomb isn't it? Oh, the children!"

"Mrs. Holcomb!" snapped Hamilton. "Listen to me. We're going to do everything we can to get you and the children out of the building safely. There isn't a man out there who wants to see any harm come to these children."

Forster jumped in, using their cover story. "We suspect a radio detonated device, Ma'am. Even now, an RAF jamming aircraft is over the city, blanketing out all radio signals. The only working radio devices operating right now are ours."

Hamilton nodded. "What I need you to do is to quietly inform your staff that you'll be leaving the building in approximately thirty minutes. There will be three buses a short distance from the entrance. We need you to move the children quickly and quietly to the buses, then we'll move you away from the building. My partner and I will stay and help you move the children, but if we tell you to run, do so and urge the children to do so."

Holcomb looked faint and Forster moved up to place a hand on her shoulder. "Mrs Holcomb, getting you and the children out of here safely are our highest priority. As far as the government is concerned, the terrorists can blow up an empty building. It can be rebuilt, after all. But we cannot replace the children or your staff."

Overhead, a pair of RAF aircraft flew a circular pattern as part of the quickly assembled deception. The pilots had been ordered to orbit at a specific altitude, never knowing the ultimate in stealth flight orbited only a few thousand feet below them. The pilots had also been instructed to ignore the 'special operations unit' they saw in the skies below them. The dragons would become visible if the riders had to cast a Patronus charm.

The complex jamming electronics in each aircraft was designed to suppress enemy transmissions. In this case, it was being used to blanket any commercial broadcasts, including the frequencies used by a remote TV camera such as the type owned by the BBC or Sky News. The mobile phone network was also down, thanks to the jamming.

The Prime Minister had phoned the mayor of the city personally to inform him of what was happening and fact that the government was going to do everything they could to ensure the safety of the children. The mayor couldn't put up too much of a stink and he fervently prayed that when he finally got in front of a working microphone, it would be to report the safe evacuation of the building. As far as the mayor knew, the government was working feverishly to deal with a bona fide terrorist threat to his city.

Harry had rearranged the wings for this operation. He flew over the building with most of his magical riders in close formation. Above him by several hundred feet flew the rest of the riders, then the full complement of Campbeltown's dragons. The Weyr was taking no chances with this.

The unmanned wings would only become involved if it looked like any of the dementors were getting away.

On the ground, Remus and Sirius watched from an army Land Rover with Major Atkins. The buses wouldn't be moved into place until the army had cleared the civilians out of the area. The government was trying very hard to keep the dragons secret, which was why they were once again blaming the same middle eastern terrorist organization for this crisis.

The terrorist organization had refuted the government's claims for the June twenty second incident, and they found themselves in a unique position of no one believing them. It wasn't like they could demand a hearing on the issue.

After twenty minutes of whispered conversations, Mrs. Holcomb had managed to explain to her staff the problem. Knowledge of the problem however only served to increase the feeling of dread among the staff.

The children had been jittery and upset all day long and the staff had experienced an especially difficult day. No one on the staff understood that the dementors had been the cause of the dread they were now feeling and everyone was short tempered. The staff that normally dealt with the children three years old and younger had the added distraction of children that were upset and grumpy due to missed naps. The building was too cold and uncomfortable for sleep.

Mrs. Holcomb walked over to Inspector Hamilton. "We'll be ready in a few minutes. The staff are getting the kids ready to leave. The children have been told they are going for a bus ride to get some ice cream. That should keep them focused enough to get onto the buses."

Hamilton smiled. "Ma'am, if it'll help, I promise to personally buy the ice cream."

She smiled weakly at him and marveled at how much like her husband he was. Strong and so very caring about the people he had sworn to protect.

"I'll signal them that we're ready for the buses, then I'll go help the youngest children," Forster offered.

"That'll be Miss Melody's room, last door on the left. She has three assistants but her children are all basically toddlers. Most will have to be carried," Mrs. Holcomb said gratefully. There were more children than the four adults could easily move without help.

Forster nodded. "Thank you, Ma'am."

He turned and trotted towards the entrance where he stopped and stood just inside the glass doors. The building protected them from the dementors who couldn't enter. But it also trapped them inside. Evacuating the children was necessary. Accidents happen and there was no way to destroy the dementors without risking the chance that they might open a way into the building for the dementors to use.

For all the terror they generated and their fearsome abilities, dementors were physically weak creatures who were unable to catch their prey unless they were in the open. A locked door or a sealed room often kept the beasts at bay. They could push a door open, or turn a knob, but even the flimsiest of locks stymied them.

Forster waved at the cluster of land rovers just across the parking lot. A man standing close to one of the vehicles spotted him and waved back, then he turned to speak to someone inside the rover.

Harry began what seemed to be his six hundredth circuit of the block below. It was one of the tightest turns his dragon was capable of and still maintain flight. He kept one eye on the building with the dark figures floating just above the roof and one mental ear on the chatter from his riders. More than one rider complained that this flight pattern was making him sick and privately Harry had to agree.

"The big cars are moving, Weyrleader," announced Garanoth. The non-magical riders were about two hundred feet above them and flying in a broader pattern. They may take a few extra second to get onto the scene, but Harry and his wizards would be there first. Their job was to force the dementors away, while the non-magical riders dealt with them directly.

"Everyone get ready. Do not cast your charm until you see me cast," Harry sent. He had eight magical riders who had shown him they could cast a patronus charm using their dragon.

Down in front of Happy Smiles, three buses slowly motored up to the entrance and stopped. A group of nearly a dozen soldiers from the British Army's magical unit rushed across the street to help move the children.

The first twenty or so children and staff made it to the buses safely, then the dementors realized that their prey was escaping. The dementors surged for the edge of the roof hoping to head off their escaping prey.

"Harry!" shouted Chekiath.

"Shit," he replied, then he placed a hand against Chekiath's neck. "Expecto Patronum!"

Chekiath burst into a blaze of white light as he fell upon the dementors that were rushing the children. Behind him eight other dragons lit up and followed him in that tight dive. The manned wings above bellowed in fury and joined their kin, diving towards the day care center and the loathsome beasts.

Harry struggled to ignore the voice of his mother pleading for his life. Below him, he could hear the screams of terrified children who didn't understand the invisible menace. Several were already overcome and prone on the ground by the full effect of the creatures.

The sound of the dragons bellowing in fury gave the dementors pause and they looked up. They recoiled and pulled back from the blazing dragons, scattering in every direction. They fled the front of the building, squealing in pain and anger at being denied an easy meal. Chekiath pulled up quickly and landed on the first bus. Chekiath roared another challenge as the other eight dragons settled around the daycare center entrance. The light from the charm filled the entire area, bathing it in the patronus effect.

So many dragons lit up with the charm created a 'safe zone' that no dementor would dare attempt to enter, even with the temptation of children to feed upon. Meanwhile children continued to stream out of the building with the help of the army, running towards the waiting buses.

Chekiath reared up and bellowed again just as the rest of the Weyr arrived. Garanoth swooped down and grasped a fleeing dementor and popped Between, while the rest of the dragons chased down the others and took them Between.

Harry kept a careful count and as soon as the last dementor was gone, he gave the order to retreat. The dragons had been visible in the skies of Leicester for just under one minute and then they were gone.

"Wow," Sirius said in shocked surprise as the light from the charmed dragons faded away. They all knew about the dragons being used to channel the patronus, but this was the first time they'd witnessed it. The effect of the spell cast on the already magical dragons left them all in awe and more than a bit aroused. The patronus was most effective when it was cast with a loving memory and that feeling hit everyone caught in their range.

"Yeah, wow," Katherine said with a slight pant. She reached over and gripped Sirius' hand tightly and gave him a gentle smile.

Remus looked at the pair and shook his head in amusement. He could clearly see and smell the arousal on the two sitting in the front seat.

"Well, I think I'll go over to the buses and hand out these chocolates," he offered.

"You do that," Katherine said softly, "I'll make sure Sirius is safe."

Sirius nodded and Remus chuckled. He exited the rover and walked over to the first bus. In his hands he had a large bag with chocolate bars from Honeydukes to hand out to everyone that had been close to the dementors. "Safe?" he said with a chuckle, "I can't wait til I get back to the Weyr so I can be safe too."

Kitchen Hall, Campbeltown Weyr, August 21st...

Harry shuffled into the hall and absently poured himself a cup of tea before taking a seat. Yesterday had been exhausting for everyone and it showed. When they came home most of the riders retired to their own Weyrs, while Harry had to stay up to deal with problems and issues generated by yesterday's action.

Dragons from around the world questioned him concerning dementors. They were not limited to the United Kingdom and Harry ended up spending several hours discussing dementors while broadcasting to the dragons around the world.

Physically it hadn't been all that difficult or different than any other day, but emotionally it was a powerfully charged event that rippled across the Weyr and beyond. Harry had gotten to bed later than his riders and his sleep was disturbed as it often was after a dementor encounter.

He sipped his tea and half dozed at the table when a voice shook him from his stupor.

"Harry?"

He blinked and looked around before spotting Lord Mills standing nearby. "James. I'm sorry, did you say something?"

"I asked if I could join you. What time did you get to sleep? You still look exhausted," James said worriedly.

"It was late," Harry said, waving him toward a chair. "I won't say that dementors frighten dragons but they were very upset by the creatures," he paused and looked thoughtful. "I guess it makes sense. The dementors can take away their ability to reason. Lord knows that would scare anyone. A lot of the dragons around the world wanted to know what we were going to do with the creatures so I spent a great deal of time explaining last night. While we're dealing with them here, there are still dementors in other countries."

James nodded. "I think you should rest today, but I wanted to tell you that Her Majesty and the Prime Minister both want to thank you and your dragons for yesterday. With your permission, the Queen would like to visit on the twenty sixth."

Harry looked at him blankly for a moment, then grinned ruefully. "This is one of those times when I'm the public face for the dragons, right?"

James chuckled, "Right in one, lad, but she really does want to thank your riders and dragons. You averted a disaster yesterday. I'm very pleased to say that there were no injuries."

Harry shrugged. "I'll let the riders know and we'll spruce the place up a bit. We've been rather sloppy at Hangar two lately. How did things go otherwise?"

James smiled. "We didn't quite clear out as well as we thought and the PM's office had to lean on the press and BBC, but they agreed not to publish the videos they took. The staff of the day care center all agreed to cooperate, as did the parents of the children. Mrs. Holcomb, the manager of the center, asked if the dragons could come back to visit the children if their existence becomes know to the public.

"The PM thinks the dragons secret is getting too difficult to keep. We may see an announcement to the public sooner than with originally thought. I'd be surprised if we can keep it for another year."

Harry looked surprised, then smiled at the thought of meeting the children. He remembered Chekiath being surrounded by small children at Maziang and considered how such an image would help solidify their position.

Seeing Harry's gentle smile, James asked him what he was thinking about.

He blushed and looked down for a moment. "I was thinking about Maziang and how the children there loved our dragons. I suppose it's wrong of me to consider using people, especially children, but it struck me that an image of small children meeting with a dragon would send a powerful message, wouldn't it?"

James smiled slightly. "It would, indeed. But how would it be using people? Luna showed me a photo she took of the children at Maziang swarming over Trandieth, who laid there rumbling and content. It was an amazing image and it really showed the close relationship that can exist between humans and dragons.

"I'm actually very pleased that it occurred to you, lad. You need to think about your people and what can be done to improve their lives and positions. Soon, not this year, but certainly by next year, the world will know about dragons and will want to know more about them. Public relations is more than just making yourself look good, Harry. It's about creating a feeling or image that springs to mind when you think about something.

"In my youth, if someone mentioned the Coke Cola company, I immediately remembered a commercial they made with hundreds of people my age singing. They were trying to sell the idea that we might be all from different countries, but we were all still just people. It was a subtle way of marketing their product and it worked very well for them. I still smile every time I hear 'I'd like to teach the world to sing'."

Harry took a swallow of his drink. "So, what's the answer? Prime Minister Major has a press secretary and a special office for handling the press. Should we do something similar?"

James leaned back, surprised by Harry's question. It really wasn't an unreasonable idea. The Queen was already considering what would happen when the dragons became public knowledge. "Let me ask a few people, Harry. It's an interesting issue and perhaps we can help you some. I know you'd prefer a rider to handle the position, but learning what the job entails definitely requires some professional help."

Harry nodded and looked around. While he'd been talking to James the hall had filled with riders and other Weyr personnel. He saw Lisa sitting in the corner reading a book and smiled. The girl had failed to impress, but she had requested to stay at the Weyr. She was now deep in her books, studying healer spells and trying to help Doctor Sheppard as much as possible.

Katie Bell and Hermione also helped at the clinic, but their wing duties cut into their free time. Lisa had no dragon to care for and no real duties, so her helping at the clinic solved the problem of what to do with her. Harry fervently hoped she'd impress at the next hatching.

Harry stood and walked to the front of the room. Slowly the noise subsided as people noticed him.

"Good morning," he said quietly. "First off, thanks to your efforts, not a single child was injured yesterday and eight more dementors were destroyed, leaving only two still to find. Each of you should be proud of that. I know I am proud of it, and of you. Lord Mills informs me that because of your efforts, the Queen will be visiting us on the twenty sixth of this month.

"I was going to ask you all relax today, but given the Queen's visit, I think we should assemble in Hangar Two after breakfast and spend the morning cleaning up the place. After lunch, you're on your own. Luna, let's plan on restarting your search the day after the Queen's visit."

He paused for a moment, then he looked around. "Since the Wizarding world knows about dragons and doesn't know about us, I'm thinking it might not be a bad idea to invite Luna's father here to cover the Queen's visit, and perhaps do an article about dragon riders."

Remus looked up from his breakfast, surprised at the suggestion He had been considering suggesting it himself for the past few days. "It would make searching on the magical side easier, Harry. If people understood what being a rider was all about, they might be more likely to go along with a son or daughter being tapped as a candidate," he offered.

"My thoughts exactly," Harry replied, then turned to Luna, "What do you think? Would your father be agreeable?"

She smiled at him. "Daddy would love to do a story about dragons and the Queen, but I think it would be best if I write the article about being a rider. Daddy tends to get a little fanciful with his reporting when he doesn't have first hand experience."

Several of the riders turned to stare and Luna and wondered what she could possibly consider fanciful.

Campbeltown Weyr, August 23rd...

Sirius bounced out of bed when he heard the pounding on his door. From the outside he could hear dragons bellowing in alarm. It was late and someone was waking up the Weyr in a big way.

"What the devil," he muttered and he quickly threw on a robe.

Katherine lifted her head from the bed. "Siri? What's going on?"

"Damned if I know. The dragons seem upset about something," he muttered.

Sirius charged out of the bedroom, followed by Katherine, who was hurriedly putting on a robe. He strode up to the door and threw it open. "WHAT?" he shouted, then he blinked in surprise.

Sirius stopped and stared at Harry, who seemed to be in a panic.

"I can't find him, Siri!" he shouted.

"Harry?"

"I found him, Harry. He's in his quarters!" Chekiath announced excitedly.

Harry stopped and turned to stare up the street. "Don't let him get out. Surround the building with dragons. If he tries to get out, stop him, but be careful not to hurt him!" he shouted, then took off running in the direction of Remus' house.

Sirius took one look at the number of dragons landing on top of and around Remus' cottage and he muttered. "Oh, lord."

"Siri?" asked Katherine.

"Come on. I told Remus to tell Harry about the new treatment, but he didn't!" He took off, leaving a bewildered Katherine standing in the doorway. "Harry! Wait!" he shouted.

The front door of Remus' house started to open and a dragon shot a stream of fire across the door.

"Harry!" shouted Sirius, "Stop!"

Harry stood outside of the cottage looking at Sirius strangely. Around him, riders were assembling and someone had thought to grab several bows and bandoliers, which they were handing out.

Sirius grimaced. "Harry, stop," he repeated as he ran to his godson's side.

Harry scowled. "Sirius, it's a full moon!" he protested.

He placed a hand on his shoulder, planning to explain the new treatment to Harry, when a voice shouted from inside the cottage.

"What the hell is going on out there?"

"Remus?" Harry said in a shocked voice, he was looking over Sirius' shoulder towards the surrounded house.

Sirius looked at Harry, then he glanced around noting most of the riders were now present and several of Katherine's security team were nervously fingering their weapons.

"It's okay folks. It's all a big misunderstanding. You can all go back to bed," he said to everyone.

"Can I open the door without someone trying to cook me?" asked Remus.

Sirius looked at Harry who's confused expression was too much and he started to laugh. Slowly people started to walk away, but it was clear that they would be demanding an explanation tomorrow.

The door slowly opened and Remus poked his head out, looking more than a little upset.

"Harry, should I flame him?" asked Chekiath uncertainly. "He doesn't seem to be out of control."

Harry stared at Remus for a moment, then he shook his head. "Er... no, I don't think it will be needed Cheki. But if I don't start getting some answers soon I'm going to give my permission to use this cottage as a new place to deposit dragon dung!"

Sirius nodded and strode to the door and opened it fully. Moony stood in his robe, looking bewildered. Much to Sirius' pleasure, so did a rumpled looking Mildred O'Connor! He smirked at the pair and motioned for Harry to follow him.

Harry turned to his dragon. "Why don't you go get some sleep? I'll catch up with you later."

Chekiath bobbed his head and turned away. Their place was nearby and it was easier to walk the short distance than to fly it.

Harry stepped into the cottage and looked around. Katherine and Sirius were both trying very hard not to laugh, while both Remus and Mildred looked like a pair of kids that had been caught stealing cookies.

"Imagine my surprise," Harry said flatly, "when I came off of first shift night patrol, thinking to stop by the bunker to spend time with Remus, only to discover the door open and the bunker empty. Five other nearby bunkers had werewolves who seemed to be sleeping, but Remus wasn't among them."

Sirius gave Remus a pointed look. He'd had been pushing Remus to tell Harry about the treatments and Remus hadn't wanted to because he didn't want Harry to get his hopes up.

Harry turned to Remus with a hard look on his face. "How is this possible?" he asked flatly.

"It's part of that treatment program we told you about, Harry," explained Remus. "It's only experimental and I didn't want you to get your hopes up."

"They have a way of stopping your transformation and you didn't think it was worth telling me?" Harry asked. It was impossible to miss the hurt in his voice.

Sirius looked up sharply. The elements of humor in this were quickly evaporating in the face of Harry's reaction. He considered both men family and not being told about this treatment highlighted the fact that he really wasn't family with either of them.

"Harry," Remus said.

Harry held up a hand, his expression became a stony mask. "No, it's all right, Remus. I understand completely."

"Dammit Remus," Mildred said angrily, then she stepped forward and grabbed Harry by the arm, pulling him towards Remus. "This is not going to end this way. Remus, he considers you family. We've all tried to explain that by not telling him about the treatment you're sending the wrong message entirely."

She turned to Harry, who was staring at the floor. "Harry, he just didn't want you to get your hopes up. He knew you were so disappointed when we found out it was rabies." She reached out and gently lifted his chin, unsurprised by the tears that were present. People tended to forget that Harry, for all his outward confidence as Weyrleader, was still a fifteen year old boy with no family of his own.

Remus seemed startled by the tears in Harry's eyes and he stepped forward. "I'm sorry," he said softly. "I guess I wasn't thinking."

"Remus, Harry is our family," Sirius said quietly. "When someone speaks about their family, you and I are the first people that come to his mind. I know it's hard for you to accept. You've been on the outside for most of your life. But you were never on the outside with James and I. Lily wanted you to be Harry's godfather, but the law wouldn't permit it. And you know if she were here now she'd be smacking you for thinking you're still an outcast."

Remus' eyes filled with tears to match Harry's. The mention of Lily hit him hard. James and Sirius were like brothers, co-conspirators in crime. But Lily had figured out his problem in her first year and had confronted him about it. She treated him at first like a close friend, and then ultimately like a sibling.

Remus nodded jerkily and pulled Harry into a hug. "I'm sorry," he whispered, "I didn't mean to hurt you."

Too overwhelmed to speak, all Harry could do was nod against his shoulder. Mildred smiled and stepped away from the pair, she gave Sirius a grateful look.

Harry and Remus had a whispered conversation, then Harry nodded and gave him a weak grin.

Embarrassed, he pulled away from the older man. "I guess I'll turn in," he murmured and walked out the front door.

Remus watched him go, then he ran a hand through his hair and took a noisy breath. "I really mucked that up," he muttered.

"You did," Sirius agreed, "but it also looked like you managed to fix it. We see Harry talking to the Prime Minister and the Queen and commanding thousands of dragons, and we forget for all that, he's still only fifteen. Harry is still growing up, but he's still a boy who was denied a family's love. I don't expect him to be as awesome as I was at fifteen, of course, but with a little luck and a lot of help, he'll be close!"

Remus gave Sirius a pointed look. He remembered well the panicked, tear ridden Sirius who had been thrown out of his home by his mother. He also remembered the day Charlus Potter came to Hogwarts and spoke intently to Sirius, who broke down in tears again after discovering the Potters were willing to take him into their home and their hearts.

Remus shook his head. "It's a good thing too. Unlike you, Harry has a head on his shoulders and a clear sense of responsibility. I'll arrange to spend some extra time with Harry. We don't have enough time together as it is and that's been an oversight on my part that I intend to remedy as soon as possible."

Mildred made a show of wiping her forehead in relief. "Good. Can we go back to bed now? It's nearly three in the morning."

Sirius' eyes lit up. "Yes, about that. Since when did you two start sharing blankies?"

Mildred turned to Sirius. "Get out. Now," she said flatly. She glanced at Katherine, then arched an eyebrow when she noted the curiosity in the other woman's eyes.

"Okay, don't get shirty, we're going," Sirius said, then he reached for Katherine's hand and tugged her toward the door.

With the others finally gone, Mildred turned to Remus, who still looked thoughtful.

"I really messed things up didn't I?" he asked.

"That depends," she replied.

He glanced up at her. "What?"

"Remus, this can go one of two ways. You can use the opportunity to strengthen your bond with Harry, or you can do nothing and it will weaken your relationship. What you do from here will determine if you messed this up or not."

He nodded. "Yes, I can see that," he said with a sigh. "but there's nothing more to be done tonight. Let's go back to bed."

She nodded and took his hand.

Ministry of Magic, Office of the Deputy Minister, August 25th...

O'Hearny glanced up and smiled, seeing Albus walk in with a bright smile of his own. "You're looking awful chipper, Albus. Some good news?"

"Actually, yes. As you know, I tracked down John Tuscany Senior and managed to arrange a meeting with him at the Swiss Ministry. Given that the previous administration wanted to extradite the entire Tuscany family back to Britain, the Swiss were naturally cautious and wanted the meeting to occur under controlled circumstances."

O'Hearny leaned forward in his chair. "And?"

"Once Tuscany was convinced that I wasn't there to kidnap him, he told me about the warding schema used on their townhouse. It was an old Gnome warding scheme combined with some goblin elements."

He paused and nodded to Croaker, who had just entered. "Alejandro, I was just telling Sir William about the warding schema used by the Tuscany family."

Croaker sat at his desk and looked at Albus with interest. "So it was a ward? I thought it might be! That kind of blast is only managed with multiple wizards, or with some of the more dangerous wards."

Albus nodded. "As it turns out, this particular schema was erected during the middle of the last century. It was a collaborative effort between the Swiss Gnomes and the Gringotts Goblins. The last two wards were the cause. The Gnomes put a core collector next to a suicide ward."

Croaker winced. "Ouch. Well, that explains it."

"Explains what? I don't understand," complained Sir William.

"It's simple, Sir William. The house was originally built on a plot of land with no other homes around it. As such, it was warded accordingly. A core collector ward is benign and nearly undetectable. Its sole purpose is to provide power to the next ward, usually something like a bunker ward, which is just a shield. A core collector will eventually burn out, but while it's running, it feeds power from the attacking wizards to the next ward. In this case, the ward was meant to destroy the home and kill everyone inside. A suicide ward is exactly what it sounds like. It's meant to prevent the people inside the ward from falling into the hands of the enemy. Mind you, this ward is very old and was used at a time when people were routinely captured and tortured before being killed," Albus said.

Croaker nodded. "The kicker is, those two wards aren't supposed to be adjacent to each other. The collector overpowered the suicide ward and we ended up with a massive explosion."

"According to Tuscany, before heading to their bolt hole, he activated a last ditch ward that was supposed to destroy the building. In fact, he had to dig through their vaults to find a detailed explanation of the schema, which I personally examined. Those two wards had been put in place back in 1846 by his grandfather, shortly after the house was built. At that time, there wasn't another house within five hundred yards."

Albus sighed, then he looked at O'Hearny, "The Tuscany family were appalled by the devastation and the injuries caused by the Ministry. Even though they can make a case for self defense, they are willing to help as much as they can.

"To that effect, John Tuscany has told me that he is willing to donate one third of their family wealth to a fund to aid the victims of the disaster, as well as other ministry victims. I told him I was not authorized to accept such a thing, but I would convey the message to you."

Sir William looked surprised. "How much are they offering?"

"Some thirty four million galleons," Albus said quietly.

Sir William sat back and thought for a minute while the other two men watch him. The Goblins were still pretty much in charge of the value of the galleon, but the money in pounds was very substantial.

"We would be hard pressed to make a case against the Tuscany's, wouldn't we?" asked Sir William.

"Yes. The wards were put in place long before any of them were born, and even if they hadn't been, John was rightly concerned about his children and grandchildren. There were six sons, two daughters, nineteen grandchildren and in-laws he was protecting. On the other hand, they were being attacked by a ministry we've already declared illegal," Croaker replied.

"I say take them up on their offer, Sir William, and let them know they are welcome to return to Britain. To be honest, John Senior was part of the large neutral block in the Wizengamot and we could use a man of his caliber back in the country, helping us rebuild."

Sir William nodded. "Very well. Craft up a letter to that effect. Ask him to seriously consider returning to help us rebuild and I'll sign it. I can't see us blaming them for something the old ministry caused. And I certainly don't want to start hunting for people to pin blame on!"

"No, there's enough of that to spread around," Croaker said. "Our biggest problem is motivating people to actually take a stand. I'm afraid Potter had it spot on when he called the common wizard and witch sheep."

Sir William chuckled darkly. His experiences with the Weyrleader had left the impression of a very honest, unyielding and dour young man. Certainly not a person he'd want any of his granddaughters to meet.

Campbeltown Weyr, August 26th...

Harry smiled as he watched Major Atkins check over her company for the fifth time in as many minutes. The woman who seemed to exude calm confidence most of the time was in an absolute panic over the fact that the Queen would be arriving to meet with the dragons again and to thank them for their efforts in saving the children at the day care center.

Harry had the Weyr turned out and lined up. The Queen and her consort were due to arrive any moment. They had called ahead just a few minutes ago stating they were only a few miles away.

Hagrid stood with Selanth not far from Narth, who was still recovering from his injuries. The broken leg hadn't healed well and the dragon walked with a noticeable limp, even if he had no real pain. It had been discussed among the Weyr Council and Harry decided to allow Narth to make the choice if he wanted to return to duty at the castle. Harry intended that he be placed on limited duty so he wouldn't have to tax his leg too much.

Even with the splints, the bone had shifted slowly as it healed, resulting in a limp for the dragon. Hagrid and May were trying to find a way of splinting a dragon limb that ordinary humans could apply. Right now, only Hagrid had the strength to tie a splint that wouldn't allow for the break to shift. Casting was an option, but the logistics were a bit daunting.

Not far from Harry Albus Dumbledore stood with Sir William, Croaker and the Prime Minister.

A radio blared and Katherine spoke into it for a moment, then she turned to Sergeant Nichols and nodded.

"Company, attention!" Nichols shouted.

"Wake up, guys," Harry sent to the dragons, knowing they would tell their riders. "It's time to play politics."

The riders scrambled into position next to their dragons and gave themselves a quick look over just as a motorcade of cars came around the corner of the main administration building.

The cars slowed slightly in front of the building, no doubt to look at the latest addition to the Weyr. Two flags flew outside of the administration building and one had been the source of some controversy. The British flag flew as it had for years at this air base, but next to it, and at the same height, was a flag designed by May and Karen Khan and approved by near unanimous vote of the riders. It was pure white field with a silhouette of a dragon and rider in flight.

The flag itself wasn't as much of an issue as the fact that Harry had extended the second flagpole so the two flags were of equal height. Lord Mills had patiently explained to him that the flag was supposed to be lower than the British flag, but Harry had replied that that wasn't the case for a sovereign nation. The Queen was visiting dragon territory and the Weyr honored their visitors by flying the visiting country's flag next to theirs, rather than below it.

James looked aghast at Harry pronouncement and Sirius started howling with laughter.

Harry was asserting his idea that the dragons were a nationality. He was taking a risk and everyone knew it. Campbeltown still belonged to the British. For the moment, there was no dragon nation except in some secret memos from the Prime Minister's office.

The limousines came to a stop near Major Atkins and her company. Several men exited from the lead car and the last car, taking up positions around the Queen's limousine, then they looked around nervously. Five hundred and thirty five dragons were an imposing sight on the ground and in the air. Harry was certain each of those security men were assessing their weapons against so many dragons and not liking the odds.

A man stepped out of the Queen's limousine and held the door open as the Queen stepped out.

"Harry, Wolf says the man is the Lord Steward, Viscount Ridley. Remus says he is a very important person to the Lady Holder," Spath offered.

Harry nodded and kept his smile fixed in place. The Queen stepped from the car followed by Prince Philip, her consort, who had been absent when the Weyr went to Balmoral to meet with the Queen the first time.

A small stage had been set up with some chairs and a public address system so everyone could hear the Queen. She took the arm of her consort and he led her up the short steps to the stage. She glanced over towards the administration building and noted the flag with interest, then she turned and smiled at Harry, who stood in front of the three wings of riders.

Chekiath took one step forward. "Lady Holder, the Weyr is honored by your visit."

The Queen smiled at Chekiath and walked over to the microphone. "Thank you for your gracious welcome, Chekiath. We will keep our comments here brief, as we would much prefer to see for ourselves what you have done here. Weyrleader, please attend me."

Harry nervously climbed up on the stage and stood next to the Queen, who smiled at him.

"On two separate occasions the Weyr has placed itself in harms way in order to protect our subjects. On one of those occasions, dragons were lost trying to protect others.

"We watched as the Weyr mourned one of their own and then later, learned of their bravery in helping rescue over one hundred children from the dementors. We have not known about dragons long but in that incredibly short time the dragons have shown us friendship and an eagerness to not only help, but to protect and defend those in need that is only ever found amongst our most stalwart allies."

The Lord Steward stepped up behind the Queen, opened a briefcase and turned it toward her.

She took a small rectangular box from the briefcase. "Weyrleader," she said, turning to face him, "we would like to show our most heartfelt appreciation to you and your dragons."

She handed him the ornate box and he looked down at it curiously.

"Within is the George Cross. It is usually given to a civilian for bravery of the highest order. We grant this award posthumously to the dragon known as Ranglieth, who lost his life trying to save innocent lives placed in harms way by the rebellious Ministry of Magic. Similar awards have been commissioned for the dragons lost in the battle beneath Gringotts and will be presented by our Deputy Minister of Magic."

"Dragons," Spath said, "the lady Holder honors us! These tiny pieces of metal are signs of her appreciation and high regard. She honors us as she would a human."

Harry looked stunned for a moment, then he smiled. He was glad that Spath understood the significance of the gesture and explained it to the Weyr. He was also glad that Spath had not been broadcasting, but speaking only to the dragons. "On behalf of Ranglieth and his Weyr, we are honored to accept this, Ma'am. It shall hold a place of honor among us for as long as the Weyr survives."

The dragons were silent for a moment, then Chekiath started thrumming with approval. Soon, every dragon in the Weyr was thrumming. It was a sound that could be felt in the bones. The Queen looked to Harry for an explanation.

"It's the dragon form of clapping, Ma'am," Harry said quietly.

The Queen smiled, then reached for another box. She held it up for all to see and the dragons fell silent again. "This George Cross is awarded to Narth, leader of the castle dragon guard who was seriously injured in the battle at Balmoral Castle. His life was forever altered by his injuries, but we sincerely hope he will return to Balmoral and make it his home. We have authorized a place to be constructed for the dragon guard to sleep and wish it known that Narth is always welcome at Balmoral. For centuries his kin have flown our skies. Now it is time for him to be welcomed on our grounds."

As Narth limped forward, the Queen extracted the medal, which had been placed on an extra long ribbon. The large dragon didn't come onto the stage, but he was easily able to crane his long neck up so that the Queen and Prince Philip could place the award over his head as the rest of the Weyr signaled their approval. Narth's head was large and it took two people to place the ribbon around his neck.

"Thank you, Lady Holder. I would like to return to Balmoral. I have flown over it many times in my life and it is nice to know I can finally visit without fear," Narth said.

"You will always be welcome, Narth," the Queen replied. "We confess that we greatly missed our conversations while you were recovering."

Narth bobbed his head, accepting the compliment. "I missed them as well, Lady Holder."

Harry stepped forward when the Queen did and he affectionately slapped the dragon's neck. "If you wish, Narth, we'll make up something so you can hang your medal on the wall of your stall," Harry said quietly.

The dragon stalls were devoid of any decorations and Narth's medal would trigger a flurry of requests from the other dragons for photos and other items to hang from their walls. The bonded dragons had already taken to decorating their stalls, but Narth would be the first non-bonded dragon to do so. Dragons did not appreciate human abstract art, but photos, pictures of friends and other decorative items would soon make their way into the dragon stalls.

The Queen gave one final smile to Narth, then he backed away and she turned to the Lord Steward and withdrew two more medal cases. She returned to the microphone and looked at the assembled riders. "Traditionally, these medallions are granted to individuals for outstanding acts of bravery. In a few rare instances, they have been granted to several people for the same incident.

"In issuing an award to a rider, we realized that the rider is part of a pair who cannot be easily separated. Weyrleader, would you and your dragon step forward please?"

Harry looked stunned and the dragons increased the sound of their thrumming approval. Chekiath came up to the foot of the stage.

"It is hard to define all that the Weyrleader has done, for his dragons and for our country. When the time comes for dragons to become public knowledge, we intend to add his name and some diverse others to the honors list. But for now, this will do."

She handed the boxes to Harry. "Since last November, when you were forced into an illegal contest, you have faced adversity and pushed forward, never faltering. Your bravery saw you willing to pit yourself against an entire race of wizards, alone if need be. Your willingness to work with us and aid us when the rebellious nature of the Ministry of Magic was revealed cannot be forgotten. Your selfless acts in protecting our person at Balmoral and again in saving the children of Leicester are the mark of a true friend to the British nation."

The riders started cheering and both Harry and Chekiath blushed.

The Queen waited until the cheering stopped and she smiled down at the riders. "In the coming months we shall see many changes, and soon the dragons will be known to the rest of humanity. That is inevitable. Since the very beginning, the Weyrleader has rightly pushed for a limited form of autonomy, which cannot be granted without more people knowing about dragons.

"We have spoken with our Prime Minister and with the leaders of the opposition parties, informing them about dragons and our desires in the matter. In the interests of maintaining cordial relations, we have reached an agreement."

She turned to the briefcase and removed a scroll, which she then held out to Harry. "With this writ, I, Elizabeth, Queen and The Lady Holder, cede this land, in perpetuity, to the dragons, so they may always call it home. We recognize the race of creatures we call dragons to be as intelligent and self aware as any human and accord them all rights and privileges accorded therein."

Harry, shocked to the core, numbly accepted the scroll from the Queen. He had been sure it would take years of prodding for this sort of thing to happen. He bowed to the Queen. "On behalf of the dragons of Earth, I thank you, Your Majesty."

The dragons suddenly bellowed their approval and for a moment no one could hear over their trumpeting happiness.

When the noise finally settled down, the Queen turned to Harry again. "Now, Weyrleader, why don't you show us around your Weyr? We would like very much to see and hear about your plans."

When Queen stepped down from the stage and approached Katherine, who responded with a text book salute, Chekiath dismissed the Weyr. Many of the dragons went back to their stalls in the hangars, but the three manned wings had other orders. The wizarding riders went to Hangar Two for their morning lessons, while several others scattered to their various tasks. A good number of the regular riders headed over to the firing range to work on their skills.

Harry had told the riders that he wanted them doing their jobs, even if it meant just going to class.

Harry waited patiently while the Queen performed an inspection of the military police who kept security at the Weyr. Once she had finished, he led the Queen on an exhausting tour. She stopped and spoke with a number of the dragons in the infirmary and Hagrid proudly showed off their invention of the bandage paste, as well as several of the other innovations they had come up with to help treat ill dragons.

From Hangar Seven, Harry led her past the other hangers where most of the dragons slept. He pointed out the area where they were planning on bringing in mobile homes to house new riders come December and they paused and watched as several pairs of dragons made firing runs on the flight firing range.

All throughout the tour, Harry emphasized how they were spending their time between classes and adapting to the needs of the dragons. He also had help from Remus and Sirius, who spoke of other alternative jobs that the riders could do rather than concentrating on hot rock production.

Five hours later, Harry trudged into the Kitchen Hall, mentally exhausted. The Queen hadn't been an easy visitor. She asked a lot of difficult questions that Harry felt obliged to answer. He found himself having to call in one or more riders to explain something to Her Majesty more often that he would have with any other visitor. She had a very sharp mind and rarely missed details. Her questions were insightful and sometimes difficult to answer.

When she examined the Book of the Weyrs, she listed details about the governments and people that could help them. She also had an interesting request which surprised him greatly.

The Queen slowly closed the Book of the Weyrs and for a moment she ran her hand over the binding. The book was kept on a special stand in the main classroom area of Hangar Two. She looked up at the huge wall map with pins marking the location of the Weyrs, then she turned to Harry.

"Weyrleader, autonomy places you and your people in a precarious position. A great many countries will recognize the need for autonomy and allow for it, like we do. The United States is an example of that. Some will be open to the idea, once they have had it explained to them. A few, however, will be openly hostile to the idea of dragons or will not want to grant autonomy because they feel it would undermine their authority.

"We would like to propose something, but we do not wish for you to get the impression we are trying to influence you and your decisions," she said.

Harry nodded, he knew she was being very serious. "Ma'am, I would never."

He trailed off when she held up her hand. "To be truthful, Weyrleader, it is in our best interest to try to influence some of your decisions. That is the nature of relationships at the national level. My Prime Minister made a suggestion and we found it has merit. We would like to introduce you to someone who you could talk to about political issues and diplomacy. Prime Minister Major suggested that it would be to your benefit, and ours, if you received some instruction in such subjects."

"Ma'am, I'm confused. How would this be influencing my decisions?" asked Harry.

The Queen smiled. "Some will perceive it as such, Weyrleader. People will say that the Weyr is beholden to Britain and will follow British policies. Others will say that we instructed you in a manner which reflects our own policies. We both know that isn't true Weyrleader, but the press and others will read motives into your actions that do not exist."

The Queen moved to sit at one of the desks and she motioned for Harry to join her.

He took a seat facing her and he thought carefully. "I think I could only profit from such lessons, Ma'am. I find myself making decisions that affect people and it is very uncomfortable. When we start talking to other countries, I'm sure it's going to get worse."

The Queen nodded. She had been told he would probably have this reaction. The Weyrleader is still learning what his job entails. It was a first for humanity and there was no one who could show Harry how to be The Weyrleader. "We will tell the Prime Minister that you would be willing to meet with someone. While we have no doubt that your tutor will be well versed in our form of diplomacy, take what you learn and balance it against the needs of your dragons and your riders."

Harry nodded and made no attempt to hide the look of relief in his expression. The Queen glanced at her watch and stood. "The day moves on and we still have another stop to make today."

Harry looked a little disappointed, then he nodded. "We had hoped you'd be able to take a late lunch with us Ma'am, but perhaps another time?"

The Queen smiled. "Another time, Weyrleader. We will look forward to it."

Harry sat at an empty table and opened his list of things to do. He crossed several items from the list, then adding another concerning lessons in diplomacy and politics. He was staring at the list when a voice startled him.

"Are you going to eat that or are you just going to push it around your plate?"

He looked up to see May, Hermione, Mariah and several other girls standing with their trays in hand. "Erm... I was going to eat some of it," he admitted, looking down at the food.

"What has you so distracted?" asked Mariah.

Harry looked up from his untouched plate. "The Queen suggested sending someone here who could tutor me in politics and diplomacy. I guess I'm just sort of wondering where I'm going to find the time."

"Harry, your job is only going to get easier, you know," Luna said.

Harry turned to look at her. "What do you mean?"

Luna gestured to the notebook that he carried everywhere. "You keep track of everything in that book of yours, even stuff that you no longer need to keep track of. For example, Susan has been working to bring in more housing for the new riders, since many of the older buildings are unsuitable or unsafe. You know that, but I'll bet you have a bunch of entries in your book about it."

"Luna," Harry said in a pained tone, "I know Susan is taking care of that. The entries are there to remind me to find out how she's doing with it."

Luna nodded. "I realize that, but you treat every entry as if you had to personally see to it. Soon we'll have more riders and that means more people to do the tasks. You will find you have the time, you always do. Every time something new pops up, you worry over it, but you always manage to find the time to take care of it."

Susan put down her sandwich and grinned at him. "I had worried about finding places for new riders. The old housing is in sad shape. The buildings range anywhere from twenty to nearly fifty years old and some of the older buildings are falling apart. The newer buildings can be repaired, but the older ones are going to have to be removed. Then I saw the containers they use to bring Narth and the others back from Balmoral. They will solve our problem nicely."

Harry frowned. "Susan, those aren't exactly cheap. This isn't the case of spending forty thousand pounds on a greenhouse. And we'll need what? Forty or fifty of them?"

"Twenty," Susan said firmly. "Repairing the unused housing will take care of the rest. But Karen told me it wasn't a problem. I know what they cost."

Harry leaned a little across the table and looked at where Karen was sitting with a smug grin on her face. "Karen?"

She smiled. "Lord Mills told me that the government felt it wasn't right to risk the dragons on getting rid of the dementors, so they've decided to label us as contractors. Each dementor had a one million pound bounty on it."

Harry leaned back in his seat and looked stunned. "So we have?"

"Just a hair shy of fifteen million in the bank. I daresay we can afford some new housing. And we still haven't dealt with the dementors at the prison."

He nodded slowly, then he opened his notebook and added a couple entries.

Across the table, Luna pouted for a moment, then she reached into her pocket and pulled out a coin and passed it to May, who looked suitably smug.

He glanced up from writing in his book and peered at the two girls suspiciously. Both flashed innocent smiles in return, while the others started to laugh.

Xenophilius plopped down next to Harry and smiled broadly. "So, do you have time now to talk to me?"

Harry glanced sourly over at Luna who smiled and gave Harry an approving nod. "I suppose," he said tiredly.

"Jolly good! Now, tell me how you intend to fight the Rot Fang conspiracy with your dragon army!" Xeno exclaimed.

When Harry looked at her pleadingly, Luna laughed. "Daddy, the dragons aren't worried about Rot Fangs. They don't eat chocolates or ice cream, but they have promised to help us find Snorkacks."

"Really? Smashing! Simply smashing!"

Harry groaned slightly and sunk lower in his chair. Luna glanced at him and frowned. "Eat, Harry! Daddy has questions for you and you'll think better on a full belly."

Azkaban Island, September 1st...

"I hate this place," Sirius muttered uneasily. He'd never wanted to see the place again, but he wasn't about to let Harry go alone. The fact that Harry wasn't alone, that he had all of the riders with him, meant nothing to Sirius.

Katherine nodded and stood a little closer to him. She had come on Norendrath with Sirius. Like Sirius who didn't want Harry here, she came to support Sirius, who still had nightmares about the place.

She looked around and shivered. She had never seen a place as bleak and uninviting as Azkaban Prison. It was impossible to find anything positive to say about it.

More than twenty miles off of the coast of Scotland, in the North Sea, the prison sat on a hill some twenty meters above the ocean. Nothing lived on the isle, including weeds. It was a barren, forsaken place.

Down by the dock, several Royal Navy launches waited for the people to finish their tasks. There was a full company of British Army soldiers stringing barb wire fencing around the low lying portions of the island and hanging signs warning people of Anthrax. The British government was known to have experimented with Anthrax and had made another island uninhabitable for nearly forty years. It was hoped that people seeing the signs would merely assume it was another island like Gruinard. A series of muggle repelling wards would also be placed on the island as an added precaution.

Sirius walked over to where Harry stood with Alejandro Croaker, Sir William and someone from the Royal Navy. The men were clustered around a small table that held a blueprint of the castle.

"We've placed metal plating on all the rooftop exits. Those exits were the first ones we sealed off when it was decided on this course of action. At the ground level, and at each turret, we've spiked the doors, then put metal plating in place, here, here and here," Croaker said, pointing at the map.

They had slowly removed prisoners and staff from the building. In the process, they'd sealed off whole sections of the castle from the outside. It had been a gradual thing, since they hadn't wanted to alarm the dementor population or tip them off to the real intent of the modifications.

Croaker looked up at Harry. "Physically, a single dementor is fairly weak, but there's no telling what a mass of them might be capable of doing. The last prisoner was removed from the castle nearly a week ago and as we slowly removed the prisoners, we sealed all the windows with stone. They've been without anyone to feed on for a week now and have to be getting hungry. Several of our people heard them rustling around inside, but I don't think they've tried working together on a door yet."

"I'll remind everyone that we need to heat the metal enough to soften it, but not vaporize it. All of the magical riders will be overhead, ready to cast a patronus if need be," Harry replied.

"Well, it's all sealed," Croaker said, looking pointedly at the engineer in charge of the construction detail. "Now its just a matter of waiting for everyone else to get out of the way."

The man nodded and he spoke softly into a radio. A second later, a siren sounded and the man started heading down to the docks and the waiting launches.

Harry turned and walked over to Ronan. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Ronan smiled grimly. "No, but since I can't turn my dragon into a light bulb, some one has to. Besides, while I'm being unspeakably brave, you'll be overhead watching my ass."

Harry chuckled. "You're just hoping Karen will appreciate your bravery."

Ronan shrugged. "That too," he replied, then grinned.

"We'll start with the rooftop hatches. Remember, no one is to dismount from their dragon! And watch the plating. It's supposed to turn yellowish. We don't want to vaporize the metal, we just want it to soften enough that it will mold to the stone under it," Harry said. "Once you've molded the metal to the stone and it's cooled, they'll come back and drive pins into the stone that should hold everything in place."

Ronan nodded. The process was rather simple. One dragon would soften the metal, then another dragon would fly by, allowing a wizard passenger from the DMLE to apply a sticking charm as an added precaution. Harry and the wizard riders would act an an aerial guard, ready to cast a patronus charm at a moment's notice.

Croaker and the others watched from their vantage point as the dragons began their efforts.

"Are you sure this will work?" asked Sirius.

Croaker glanced over at the man and snorted. "Sure? Of course not. Until the dragons got involved, we didn't even know dementors could be destroyed. Can dementors be starved to death? I guess we're going to find out."

Harry landed an hour later, having finished watching them seal the openings to the castle. Now Azkaban was a true prison, only this time it didn't house humans. The potential for danger was high throughout the job, but in the end, it was all very anti-climatic.

"Good job," Croaker said. "I've had my people checking. Every opening is sealed good and tight. The engineers will move in an hour to add some final reinforcement."

Harry nodded, but the beginnings of a frown had Croaker looking at him oddly.

"Surely you can't be concerned over the dementors?" he exclaimed "You know what kind of monsters they are."

"I'm not concerned about dementors," Harry snapped. "I'm concerned that in my fervor to protect people and dragons, we chose a solution that might not be permanent. We don't know if they can starve to death, after all. For all we know, they're immortal unless killed by specific things. Maybe they're like vampires. We could be fixing this problem, only to see it crop up twenty years from now."

Croaker sighed. "Yes, that is a possibility I had considered. I even tasked an elf to visit daily to check that each seal remained intact. The only other option is to unseal the prison and let your dragons kill them. Do you want to risk that?"

Harry shook his head, unhappy with their solution and even less happy with the alternative. "This will have to do, I guess."

Sensing his anxiety, Chekiath crooned softly and butted his head gently against him. "This will work, Harry. If nothing else, it buys us time. If the dementors escape in twenty years, they will face a nation of dragon riders who will hunt them down without mercy."

"I know, mate," Harry replied. He turned and nodded to Croaker, then he climbed back into his place on Cheki's shoulders.

Harry pumped his fists and the dragon wings leapt into the air, then vanished from sight.

Croaker shook his head and turned back to the others. "All right, let's get this place cleaned up and those final fixes to the plates, then we can go home."

Harry's Office, Campbeltown Weyr, September 1st...

Harry was hunched over the latest addition to his office, a drafting table. He wasn't drawing, however. Instead, he used the large surface to unfold maps of the various Weyrs. Also arrayed on the table were photographs from each Weyr they had visited. He was attempting to put together a list of Weyrs which could house riders, and Weyrs which could not.

"Harry?"

He looked up from his notes. "Remus? Come in." he said, sliding off the seat and standing up.

Remus entered followed by another older man carrying a briefcase. "Harry, I'd like you to meet Lewis Franklin. He's been sent over by the Prime Minister's office to help you develop a grounding in politics and diplomacy. Mr. Franklin is recently retired from teaching at Cambridge after a long stint in government. Her Majesty has asked him to tutor you on the basics."

Harry shook the man's hand and motioned to the chairs. "Please have a seat," he said, then he glanced at the pile of papers on the table and shook his head before walking around his desk and sitting down. "I'm afraid you caught me off guard, Mr. Franklin. I wasn't expecting the PM's office to move so quickly."

Franklin nodded. "I understand, Weyrleader. My real reason for coming over here today is to drop off some material for you to look over and to arrange a time for us to begin."

He opened his briefcase and withdrew several video tapes and a slim book, then he looked at Harry. "What do you know of diplomacy, Weyrleader?"

Harry shrugged helplessly. "Painfully little, I'm afraid."

Franklin smiled. "Don't let it bother you. Every one of us develops our own style of diplomacy and every one of us starts from scratch. Students studying the topic can only learn so much from reading books or watching other diplomats at work. In your case, we need to discuss politics and diplomacy, both of which can be confusing and work against each other."

He paused and glanced up at the map on the wall showing the Weyrs worldwide. "Politics affects diplomacy. It shapes your position. When you talk to the Prime Minister of Sweden, you need to understand what shapes his position because his position is formed by internal politics."

Harry looked alarmed and Franklin chuckled. "No one is going to expect you to understand everything there is to know about another country. Even our finest diplomats are very carefully briefed before they talk with a representative of another nation.

"My job is to help you come to a basic understanding so that you know what you need in order to function diplomatically. I'll be showing you what things to look for when you're planning on meeting with a country for the first time, and we'll look at some famous negotiations to see how they managed to achieve their successes, or what may have caused their failures."

Harry nodded. "I see," he said slowly. "So what would you like me to do first?"

Franklin passed over three private label video tapes and a thin book. "These tapes contain accurate reenactments of three pivotal diplomatic conferences in the twentieth century. Some of them were touted as great successes that turned out to be historical failures. Some were successes that were played down and it wasn't under twenty years after the fact that people could say, 'that was the turning point.'.

"Watch the tapes and read the book. Pay attention to how people speak and react to what's being said. I'll come back in a week and we'll spend a few hours talking about what you've learned."

Harry glanced at the three tapes and slim book and nodded, then he turned to his calendar. "How about the seventh? Morning would be best. After our session, you're welcome to join us for lunch."

Franklin nodded and made a note in a small book. "Excellent. Seeing more of your facility would enable me to tune the information I'm giving you."

Both men stood and Harry held out his hand. "I appreciate your help, Mr. Franklin."

Taking Harry's hand, the man smiled. "I look forward to our next meeting, Weyrleader."

"I'll show him out, Harry," Remus said.

"Thanks," he replied, pleased that he'd be able to get back to his work.

The Great Hall, Hogwarts, September 1st...

Minerva stood with a touch of nervousness and faced the student body. The first years had been sorted and the feast was over. Now it was time for her to give her welcome.

"Welcome back, students," she said. "And for those joining us for the first time, welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

She paused and looked around. "No doubt you've all noted the considerable changes that have happened to our society this summer. Both the Quibbler and the Prophet have run stories about the changes sweeping throughout Wizarding Britain. Those changes include Hogwarts."

Minerva gestured to a large portrait of Queen Elizabeth behind her. There were two flag poles bracketing the portrait. One pole held the British Union flag, the other held the Hogwarts standard.

"Some of you students have an advantage," she said. "Those of you who are first born, that is, you are the first witch or wizard in your family, are at an advantage, having already attended mundane schools. Please try to help the other students, where possible. Study groups would go a long way in promoting understanding.

"In the coming months, a series of tests will be given to determine where you stand in mundane subjects like math and reading comprehension. The Queen wants you to be able to travel freely throughout the realm and not be forced to limit yourselves only to magical areas. A new school will open in Hogsmeade that will teach you mundane subjects when you're not here learning magic."

She held up her hand and the sound of protests died in the throats of some of the older students.

"Never forget that at the beginning of this summer over eight hundred wizards died in a foolish attempt to attack the Goblins of Gringotts. Goblins, muggles and dragons helped destroy the WDF. The vaunted superiority of wizards turned out to be an illusion. Your parents may tell you that you are better than muggles, and you might believe it, but you would be wrong. Wizard or muggle, you are still people, no better or worse than the other and certainly not privileged over the other.

"You will learn mundane subjects because that is the price of wanting to learn magic! The Ministry has decided that only those who carry a good grade in mundane classes will be able to attend Hogwarts beyond OWL levels."

Minerva's voice hardened. "Those of you who have taken your OWLS already will be given tutoring before your exams. You will need to achieve a minimum passing score in order continue at Hogwarts. You will have two chances at the exam to manage that."

"To that end, History of Magic and Divination have been dropped from the Hogwarts curriculum. Herbology has been changed to an elective, but it is still very valuable for anyone wishing a potions mastery, healer or auror career path.

"And finally, you have no doubt read about the formation of the Weyr. I have visited the Weyr personally this past summer and the stories you've read about in the Quibbler and the Prophet are very true. Dragons are intelligent and are reaching out to people. Hogwarts will act as host to some dragon riders sometime this month. You'll each have a chance to meet and speak with a dragon.

"Prefects, please escort your houses to their dormitories. Thank you all and I hope we have a great year!"

Minerva sat heavily in her chair and watched as the prefects ushered a stunned group of students from the hall.

Here and there in the school, some of the students were heartened by the idea of meeting dragons and were hoping to reunite with old friends.

Kitchen Hall, Campbeltown Weyr, September 5th...

May and Luna stepped into the hall and were surprised to see Harry sitting by the television watching something and taking notes. Both girls were due to take part in the two to four shift of the night patrol and had woken early to grab hot drinks before their shift started.

"Harry," May said softly, "it's nearly two in the morning. Why are you still up?"

Harry started, then he reached for the remote and paused the playback.

"I need to watch these videos, but I don't have a tape player in my quarters yet. I didn't think it would be a bother if I watched them in here late at night."

Luna sat next to Harry and glanced down at his notes. "Is it really important that you learn about this Josef Stalin? Will he be an obstacle to your plans?" she asked.

Harry chuckled. "No, he's long dead, but I've been watching him. His attitude seems all bluster and arrogance, but it really isn't. He resorts to that when he's uncomfortable with the topic, or he feels threatened. Truman, on the other hand, tried to deal with the man fairly and totally misjudged him."

"Is this really important?" Luna asked. "If they're dead, why worry about it?"

Harry glanced at May, seeing the understanding in her eyes. "Luna," he said, looking back at the blonde, "I'm the Weyrleader. For now, and probably for years to come, I'll be the only person capable of speaking for the dragons and riders."

He waved towards the paused image of three students playing the roles of Truman, Stalin and Churchill. The video was a mix of modern reenactment and newsreel footage. "Those three men were considered the top statesmen of their time. By watching them, I'm coming to understand how I'm supposed to act."

He looked down at his hands. "It's hard. At Hogwarts I used to get so angry at things. I can't do that anymore. Cheki helps me a lot, but I have to be better than that. So much depends on it."

May reached out and touched his hand. "Harry, you are who you are. Your sole focus is the dragons and their riders. Learning about these men is good, but I don't think you have to worry about being better. You just be the same man you've been since you impressed Cheki. The Weyrleader."

Luna nodded. "The rest will come naturally."

Harry looked at both girls as they finished their drinks and begin pulling on their flight jackets. He wasn't sure it would come naturally, but he still needed to watch these tapes before Mr. Franklin visited.

Hangar two, Campbeltown Weyr, September 10th...

Harry stood on the stage looking out at his riders. Behind him stood a copy of the map of Britain, showing where they had searched, looking for potential riders and for the remaining two dementors. The map was entirely colored blue at this point.

It was late in the day and the last search team had just returned as dusk settled over the Weyr. They'd come up empty and everyone was disappointed by the news.

Harry paced for a moment, then he shrugged in defeat. "I think," he said quietly, "that we have to assume that the remaining two dementors have somehow managed to slip through our net. I suppose it's possible that they could have stowed away on a channel ferry or other ship. The channel is too big for them to cross without help."

"I'm sorry, Harry. I don't see how we could have missed them. We searched everywhere," Luna replied unhappily.

"What about some of the islands? The coast is littered with them," May asked.

"Most are too far away from the shore. At best, a dementor could cross an open body of water that's a few hundred meters wide. Anything beyond a kilometer is too much for them," Sirius replied. "It's why the ministry always had a barge available for the prison, in case they were needed."

"Well, there's no use of crying over it. We're two short and they are either dead of causes unknown, or escaped off the island," added Ronan.

"I'll inform the Prime Minister, but I am sure of what he'll say. He will be grateful you found and destroyed most of them," Lord Mills offered. "Also, I have to bring the list of names Luna's put together anyway."

Lord Mills paused and he looked around for a moment. "I don't think any of you should be upset about the two missing dementors. We gave it a good shot and we took out eleven of them. It wasn't possible to search the entire country without dragon help. I say good job all."

"Does anyone have any other business?" Harry asked.

"I do," Sirius said. "Now that Luna has compiled her list of mundane potentials I'm going to set the dragons..."

He broke off as Harry turned abruptly, facing away from those below the stage.

"Harry?" he said in alarm.

"Weyrleader, thank you."

The weak voice echoed in their minds. There was a tinge of pain and extreme tiredness attached to the voice. All sound in the building seemed to cease for a split second, then the dragons started to keen.

"Omoth?" whispered Harry.

"Omoth is no more, Weyrleader. She was old and it was her time. She passed Between, happy to know you will give us humans to be our riders," Spath said with dignity.

Harry bowed his head and his tears fell freely. He quickly walked from the stage to the open area where his dragon was keening.

One of the dragons hit the pressure switch to open the massive doors to the hangar and the riders sought out their own dragons as the Weyr mourned a loss that nothing could have prevented. Omoth was one of the oldest dragons in the Weyr and hadn't had much contact with the riders.

Harry leaned against Chekiath and he knew that, in time, a great many of the non-bonded dragons would pass Between. With so many dragons in the world, barely a week went by that some dragon didn't pass Between. The Weyr only mourned those who were part of or known to their Weyr or if they witnessed the passing, but they felt the passing of the others just the same.

The non-riders could only watch as the riders and their dragons made their way out of Hangar Two and over to where Omoth made her Weyr at Hangar Four. The non-bonded dragons joined them in a massive show of support and mourning for the old dragon.

Harry stood silently, while the other dragons assembled around him. He looked down at the ground and placed one hand on Chekiath's neck, although it was unclear if he wanted comfort or was giving it.

"This isn't right," he said quietly.

The dragons stilled and waited, watching Harry closely. He looked up at his riders, and at the other non-riders that assembled at the fringe of the crowd.

"This isn't right," he said again louder.

Now everyone was looking at him, wondering what he was talking about.

He raised a hand and waved it, encompassing all of the dragons and people present. "Since Chekiath and I impressed, nearly one hundred dragons have passed Between due to age, illness or injuries received during the time of the beasts. Each of you dragons that came before Chekiath has no one to remember who you were. When you pass Between, your Weyr will mourn your passing, but only a few will know your name. And there will be no way to remember who you were."

Harry paused for a moment and he wiped at the tears that fell from his cheeks. "We need to stop this. Someday there will be a point where the only dragons in the world are those with riders, but who will remember the untold millions who came before the riders returned? Who will remember those who helped us shape our Weyr?"

Harry looked around until he spotted Remus, then he took a deep breath. "Remus, you aren't a rider, but you are still an important part of our Weyr. On Pern, the Harper was a teacher, an entertainer and a keeper of the past. We don't have true Harpers on Earth, but you've already taken it upon yourself to record our history. Would you also record the passing of those that came before? Even if it's just a record of names, they're important. Each of the non-bonded dragons has helped build our future. Will you record this so that someday our descendents will know of them?"

Remus nodded and made a promise to himself that he'd use only the finest materials to produce that book for the Weyr.

Harry walked over to Remus and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Thank you, Weyr Historian," he said, affirming Remus' place in the Weyr for all time.

"Weyr Historian!" cheered Ronan. It was a new title, and it described a job Remus had been doing since he'd joined Harry at Disko, just days after Harry impressed Chekiath.

"Weyr Historian," Spath said slowly, then he bugled loudly and all the dragons turned to him. "It is fitting. The ways of the Weyrs of Pern is our past. The Weyrleader honors that past, but he leads us to a new future with new jobs for dragon and people alike. Wolf is the first Weyr Historian."

The dragons trumpeted and Remus smiled slightly. "I can't recall anyone getting so worked up about history before," he murmured.

Harry grinned and called for Dobby. When the little elf appeared, he bent down and whispered in his ear. The elf nodded and popped away. Moments later, several of the Weyr elves appeared and started to raise the large bonfire. They had camp fires while on their trip, but this was the first time since the start of the summer that they held an all Weyr gathering.

Several of the riders ran to their quarters to bring instruments or radios out. The dragons moved a little ways back and some of the riders set up chairs so they could be more comfortable. Mariah opened a case and removed her violin, which she started to play. Gordon Chapman pulled a lap sized keyboard out of a bag and he joined with Mariah.

Harry leaned back against Chekiath and closed his eyes. To Harry, Omoth was just a name, but she represented a greater story, a greater tragedy, of dragons who wanted riders but could never have them.

Sensing his mood, Chekiath laid his large head next to Harry and crooned softly. "Wolf will help us remember, Harry. It's a good idea."

He nodded and stroked Cheki's eye ridges while listening to the music. Remus would help the Weyr remember.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, September 25th...

"You're still unsure, aren't you?" asked Chekiath as they came out from Between. "But won't it be nice to see the Harper again?"

"I was unsure from the first moment she mentioned it, Cheki. I don't know why she thinks it's a good idea to bring the riders to the school, but she was most insistent," Harry replied uneasily.

Luna had made a point of announcing that she would be visiting Hogwarts today with her search team and she thought it would be a good idea if all of the riders came along, especially the former Hogwarts students. Harry tried to talk her out of it, but as Hermione and some of the others seemed to think it was a good idea, he decided to reluctantly allow it.

"They don't understand, Cheki, but I guess this is the only way to really let them learn it for themselves," Harry said with a sigh, then he nudged the large dragon with his knees and Cheki started to spiral in to a landing at the Quidditch pitch. It was really the only place available for them to land their dragons, short of some clearings in the Forbidden forest or the area near the lake.

"It'll be fine, Harry," Cheki assured him.

Harry smiled and pat the dragon's neck. "I know, mate. I'm not worried for myself, but the others. I fear this will be a hard lesson, but it's one that must be learned."

The entire school had filled the stands and there were many other people present as well. Harry recognized several parents of the riders among the crowd and he could see Mr. Lovegood scribbling notes on a steno pad Luna had bought for him.

Harry tried to keep his distance from Mr. Lovegood since the man kept trying to cast diagnostic spells on him. He couldn't understand why Harry hadn't tried to ravage his daughter by now. It didn't help any that Luna did figure right up there with the three or four girls that fueled his fantasies most often, but he didn't really need her father trying to encourage him with advice, books or illustrated instructions!

Chekiath was the last to land and his landing caused those in the stands to fall silent. His wingtips barely missed the stands on opposing sides of the pitch. That Trath, Comaloth and Jack Bruno's Glamiath had a nearly equal wingspan was beside the point. Chekiath was the Weyrleader's dragon and he now carried himself appropriately. His very stance was a challenge. His slow look around the pitch spoke volumes about his authority and power.

Harry peeled off his helmet and gloves, sticking them in his bottomless bag, then he lightly dropped to the ground. He turned for a moment towards Chekiath and tried to hide his smile. This was their first public appearance in the wizarding world where they weren't rescuing anyone, or helping destroy the WDF. "You've got them terrified, Cheki," he said, trying to smother a laugh.

A loud murmur started up in the stands and Harry wasn't sure if it was because they recognized him or they were still surprised by how large Chekiath was.

"I didn't mean to, but I do have an image to uphold. I am your dragon, therefore I am the largest, strongest and best representative of my kind."

Harry smiled again and slapped his dragon's neck. "That you are," he murmured. Schooling his expression to one of polite interest, he then turned and walked toward Minerva, who stood nearby. Close to her were several wizards – Ministry personnel from their appearance – and curiously, a woman dressed in a muggle business suit.

Harry approached Minerva and he sketched a polite bow. "Headmistress, the Weyr appreciates you allowing this visit."

Minerva stepped forward and pulled a very surprised Harry into a hug. She couldn't believe the changes that the summer had wrought in him. He was taller, though not by much, and his shoulders were noticeably muscled. He looked tanned and fit, although she could already see the start of worry lines around his eyes.

"Hogwarts welcomes the Weyr, and you. Welcome back, Harry," she whispered, then she released him and stepped back.

Minerva cast a sonorus on herself, then she looked up at the people in the stands. "May I have your attention please?"

She waited a moment and the noise in the stands softened. "Thank you. We are honored today to host a visit by the riders from our own Weyr. They are here today because they are searching for potential rider candidates."

She held up a hand as a loud buzz ran through the crowd. "Please understand that, like magic, one is either a potential rider or not. It is not something that can be learned or forced. It is simply something you are. You know some of these riders. Some of them are your friends. Even if they wanted to, if you do not have what it takes, you cannot be a rider, so asking them only embarrasses you and them, so please refrain from asking.

"There will be some riders with the dragons all day long if you want to ask questions, but do not be afraid to ask the dragons themselves," She said, then she paused and looked at Harry who nodded. He wasn't about to leave the dragons unattended anyway.

She canceled the charm and turned to Harry, looping her hand inside his arm. "Come, I would like you to meet someone," she said.

She led Harry over to the women dressed in a business dress. "Mrs. Early, I would like to introduce you to the Weyrleader, Harry Potter. Harry, Mrs. Early is in charge of a new school built in Hogsmeade that will teach normal subjects to everyone."

She was a middle aged woman with a pleasant face. "Weyrleader, I have been briefed by Sir William personally. I am hoping to visit the Weyr someday soon. Mr. Dumbledore explained what you had accomplished and we were hoping to copy parts of it."

Harry shook her hand, "You could ask Sir William to arrange a meeting between yourself and Lord Mills, he handles most of our British government contacts for now. He can arrange for the proper clearances and such."

"So the Weyr itself is still classified?" she asked.

Harry smiled. "Yes, for now, but the dragons have been controlling who can see them for thousands of years. It was only when the wizards first invented the mage sight spell that they could no longer hide from them."

"Harry, Mrs. Early asked to sit in on my conversation with Miss Lovegood concerning the Hedge academies," Minerva said. The Hedge academies were an informal name given to a number of smaller schools that accepted students not normally able to afford, or were too weak in magic to be considered for a Hogwarts education.

"I don't see that as a problem," he replied, then he turned and signaled to Luna who had been standing nearby. She joined them and Harry turned to look at Mrs. Early. "Mrs. Early, this is Trandieth's rider, Luna Lovegood, and the person in charge of our search for candidates."

Mrs. Early looked surprised by Luna's young appearance. She had been briefed by Sir William, but really hadn't believed it when he spoke about how young the riders were.

Harry smiled briefly, almost hearing her thoughts. "Mrs. Early, you might want to remember that Luna shares her mind with another being, one who has memories spanning back millennia. Luna might appear young, but I caution you not to underestimate her."

Luna turned slightly and smiled at him. "I'm sure she'll be fine, Harry. She just doesn't understand the maturing effect the dragons have on most of us."

Harry shook his head and resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He knew Luna was referring to the ravaging again. She had been teasing him about it since her father had visited the Weyr. He was personally convinced that any move in that direction on his part would probably reduce Luna to tears and he would never stoop so low.

Rather than stick around for more teasing, he bowed slightly. "I'll allow you ladies to have your discussion," he said, then he turned and walked back towards the dragons.

Luna watched him walk away with a small frown. Her teasing had either missed the mark or he was coming to understand her more than she suspected. She turned to look at Minerva and Mrs. Early. "I'm ready when you are."

"Why don't we take this to my office?" asked Minerva.

Mrs. Early nodded eagerly and Luna followed the two women. She needed to know how many of the Hedge academies there were and where to find them. Mrs. Early needed the same information so she could inform her superiors about the number of students they needed to deal with countrywide.

Slowly, almost hesitantly, the students left the dubious safety of the stands to mingle with the riders and the dragons. It wasn't long before there were clusters of students standing around the dragons, asking questions.

Harry watched for a moment longer, then he began a careful inspection of Chekiath. "I need to oil you more," he grumbled to himself.

"You take wonderful care of me, Harry. You oil me every day. The only rider that inspects their dragon more than you is Hermione. She still feels guilt over that misaligned scale Comaloth had," Cheki replied.

Harry paused and leaned up against Cheki's flank for a moment. "Yeah, I can't really blame her for that. None of us like it when there's a problem."

He reached into his bottomless bag and withdrew a hand torch. "Let's see how we're doing, shall we?" he said.

Chekiath rumbled contentedly and sat up on his hind legs so that Harry could do his inspection. He knew there wasn't anyone here he really wanted to talk to. He also knew his riders would figure that out for themselves. And when they did, they wouldn't be happy.

"Harry?"

He looked up from his position in surprise. He had expected that certain people would seek him out, but this person wasn't one of them.

"Neville," he said with a smile, then he climbed to his feet. He had been checking the scales around the base of Cheki's right rear leg. "How are you?"

"I'm fine, Harry. Is this your dragon?"

Harry nodded and laid a hand against Chekiath. "Yes. Neville, let me introduce you to Chekiath. Cheki, this is Neville Longbottom."

"Harry has told me about you. You're the guy who likes to grow plants. Harry says you have two green thumbs, but they don't look any different to me," Chekiath said.

Neville blinked in surprise and he stared at the large Horntail. "Wow," he muttered, "Hello to you, Chekiath. I hope you take good care of Harry."

"We care for each other really. But you came here to talk to Harry didn't you? Maybe you can explain to Harry how your thumbs returned to normal. I'm sure it's an interesting tale." asked Chekiath.

Harry chuckled and shook his head. "Sometimes dragons are very literal," he explained.

Neville nodded. "Well he's right. I did come here to talk to you, thanks for reminding me," he replied, then he tore his gaze away from Chekiath and he turned back to Harry. "I just wanted to say I'm very sorry for last year. In all the years we've known each other, you never made fun of me and you tried to help me whenever you could."

Neville looked down at his feet. "Last year I was afraid that if I supported you like I wanted to, the house would turn on me too. When McGonagall gave me that emergency portkey and I later learned it would have taken me to the Weyr, I promised myself that I would never let a friend down like that again. I was wrong and I'm sorry that I helped hurt you."

Harry looked at Neville and shook his head. He didn't want to talk about that time, but Neville was freely offering the one thing he didn't think he'd ever hear. "Neville, thank you for the apology. That time was bad for everyone, but I really can't say it was all your fault."

"I know, but I added to it," Neville countered.

Harry nodded and stuck out his hand. "You might have been afraid back then, but it takes a lot of courage to admit you were wrong and then apologize for it. Thank you."

Neville took his hand and shook it. The relief in his expression was obvious.

"I wrote you a letter, apologizing," he explained, "but the owl wouldn't take it. When I heard the Weyr would be visiting, I decided to find you and apologize in person."

Harry grimaced. He forgot about the owl confundus Remus cast. He'd have to make sure it's removed.

"In the future, if you want to send something to me, it's easiest to call for Dobby and have him deliver it, but I'll see the owl obscuration is taken down. There's no need for it anymore," Harry said.

Satisfied, Neville smiled at Harry, told Chekiath how pleased he was to have met him, then excused himself and made his way back to the castle.

Social Hall, Campbeltown Weyr, September 25th...

The moment Harry stepped into the hall, Susan Bones rushed to him.

"How did you know?" she asked, her cheeks streaked with tears.

He pulled her into a loose hug, then he looked over her shoulder to the others. "How many of you came away from Hogwarts unhappy?"

Seeing that all of his magical riders had their hands up, he sighed and gently walked Susan to the table where Hermione and Emma were seated. She turned and sat and Harry waited while the magical riders rearranged themselves closer. Hermione's own expression was clearly unhappy and she would have also confronted Harry about it, except that Emma had an arm about her shoulders.

"With few exceptions, most of you had friends growing up, friends that you were certain would always be there for you. A few of us grew up differently. I was against returning to Hogwarts, not because of my own feelings for the place, but what I thought it would do to you."

He lifted his chin and looked at them. "I am a dragon rider. It's even more important to me than being Weyrleader. It helps shape and define me and will for the rest of my life. Now that I am a rider, I know that Chekiath will always have a prime position in my life. Each of you can say that and that's something your old friends will never understand."

Harry turned to Susan. "What happened, Sue?" he asked gently.

Susan sniffled. "I was talking to Hannah. We grew up together and no matter how hard I tried to explain it, she couldn't understand. It was like we had totally different priorities in our lives and that's something that never happened between us before. Then Ernie came by and made some rude comments about not liking boys so I went with a beast. Honestly, Harry, I nearly hit him."

"How many of you had similar experiences?" he asked and wasn't surprised to see most of them raising their hand.

"You knew this was going to happen, didn't you, Harry?" asked Luna. She had pushed for the riders to accompany her because she thought it would be a good chance to see the old school and perhaps connect with friends again.

The Wizarding World, in Britain at least, acknowledged the Weyr and the way was open for the riders to be able to write to their old school mates again. Luna had no real friends in her house, and she hadn't been able to meet with Ginny, her one real friend at the school, so she hadn't experienced the same thing the others had.

Harry shook his head. "Know for sure? No, but I suspected it would. We're dragon riders. Only someone living in the Weyr might understand what that means and only another rider would know for certain. You went back to the school hoping to reconnect and you discovered that your dragon was an obstacle to that. Your friends are concerned with school work and dating and the next Quidditch game, while you have an entirely different set of priorities."

"All Ron did was complain that he had no one to copy his homework from," Hermione said darkly. "When I told him I wasn't coming back, he nearly blew his top. I walked away and ran into a very unhappy Ginny, who had just come from talking to you."

Harry grimaced. "I had thought that by staying with the dragons I could avoid any problems," he admitted. "I met with Neville and I was surprised by how well that went, but then Neville always had a good head on his shoulders, even if he doesn't believe in himself.

"After Neville left, Ginny Weasley hunted me down. Ginny also wanted to know when I was returning and was very unhappy to hear that I wouldn't be. I told her I had more important things than magic to worry about and she started to get crazy. She said I didn't care about her feelings at all. I don't know where that came from, so I went for a fly on Chekiath."

"I wondered why you were flying over the castle," Luna murmured. "I saw you from McGonagall's office." She sighed and looked down at her feet. "I'm sorry," she said to the others. "I honestly thought this would be a good thing for us."

"Luna," Harry said with a smile, "we learned about six firsties and those four second years who can be riders. There's also that fourth year who wasn't present at the first task and all the other magical schools you can go to for potentials. This was in no way a failure, at least not for the weyr. And it wasn't a failure on the part of the riders, but on those who simple can't or won't understand that our lives are different now."

"I think we needed it, to be honest," Millicent said softly and everyone turned to look at her. She had met with her parents. They'd tried to make demands of her and were most upset when she'd refused them. When her father summoned an Auror over to witness his right to put her under an Imperius as the Head of her House. The Auror and his muggle trained partner had tackled him to the ground and cuffed him. Millicent spat on her father and walked back to her dragon, who was bellowing in anger.

"I needed to see that I had grown beyond that place. I was just a witch, now I am a rider. I also hope to be a scientist and I know that I can be all three. My father would have me married to a man I don't even know, just so he could seal a business deal. When I refused, he wanted to force me. I needed to see that," Millicent said.

"No one will take you away from me," Tarianth declared fiercely.

The riders all smiled hearing their own dragons echo the sentiment.

"I know, my Tari. You and I will be together forever," Millicent replied equally as fiercely.

As the day at Hogwarts had worn on, each of the magical riders had returned to their dragons, disheartened and disgusted by some of their old friends and family. Barely two hours into their visit and all the magical riders where back in the Quidditch pitch, except for Luna and Harry.

"Milli's right," added Katie. "We've all thought about what it would mean to go back. It was a fantasy, just a dream, but I think we all knew it was dream we really didn't want. We're dragon riders. There's no going back. And who would want to?"

Harry nodded. "It was a good thing, Luna," he said, then he walked over to her and lifted her chin with a finger. "It was a good thing for all of us because it showed us who we really are."

She gave him a weak smile, then she sat down with the others.

Harry grinned and called for Dobby, who appeared with the other elves. Each elf was levitating a huge container of ice cream. Harry nodded to Sirius, who had told the elves to get the ice cream. Once the tubs were on the tables, bowls and spoons appeared.

Emma stood and lifted off the lid, then she groaned. "Chocolate Demise?" she asked, looking at Sirius. He nodded and she grabbed a bowl. "The dentist in me is shrieking right now. Back off girls, this tub is mine!"

---

Author's Mockeries and rants:

- Alright, let me be succinct. I'm married and if your offers don't come with explicit videos, I'm not interested. Now go away!

- USA-Jeanette, I can't tell you how glad I am that you're not rooting for Draco's who who. I'll sleep better at night knowing that. Meanwhile you've devastated Alyx that you would criticize the great missing who who epic. Not surprisingly that makes me sleep even better!

- Obekendkoan, the excerpts were just too difficult to maintain. They were a nice idea, but Remus' work was giving away future plot points.

- AlsoknownasMatt or as we in the know call him, akamat, says things are running too slowly. We're sorry but Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither can this be built in a day.

- No ninja weresquirrels were harmed in writing these rants. However two Cyber Zombie Bunnies were killed when they attacked one of Alyx's prototype adult toys. I tried to tell her that no one would want a vibrator with changeable drill bits!

- Pokey1984 reads our stuff via a dial up connection. And that means he or she has more patience than any ten saints you can think of! We're glad you enjoy the work Pokey!

- Despite our comments, people still insist on telling us what ship they prefer. Why? I am not going to change my selection just because of your opinion. You like so and so, and someone else hates so and so. I can't please you and that other person so you know what? I'm going to please myself by writing the story the way I want it. You want a ship with so and so? Write it yourself!

- Harriverse, I won't say you or any reader is dumb. But some times little foreshadowing of future issues needs to be shouted or they get lost in the noise of the rest of the story.

- And finally, there's been a change here at fanfiction that I strongly disagree with. Once upon a time you could stop people from leaving unsigned reviews. That stopped a lot of the nasty reviews from cowards too chicken to log in and leave a review with a traceable account. Now FFN has opted to remove that feature and instead gone with a bizarre arrangement that requires the author to willfully delete unsigned reviews. This is the new policy of FFN.

Now here is my official policy.

If you cannot take the time to sign in to leave a review then I cannot possibility accept your review as authentic. I mean how can I know it's you leaving the review? I can't. Therefore all unsigned reviews will be deleted, unread and your shot at fame and glory will be lost for all time.

UNSIGNED BAD. BEER FOAMY! SIGNED GOOD!