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

5. Chapter 5

Standard Disclaimer:

Bob stepped out onto the stage and froze. The once expansive and empty area was piled high with boxes. From behind one especially large pile he could clearly hear Alyx muttering to herself.

Bob turned to the audience. "Do I really want to know?" he asked them.

The silence from the filled theater was answer enough, they were as afraid as Bob was. Sighing heavily he girded himself and walked around the corner to find Alyx sitting at a table with an old fashioned calculator. She was busily punching numbers and throwing the calculate lever.

"What are you doing?" Bob asked in frustration.

Alyx looked up and glared at him. "I am trying to avert a crisis!" she snapped. "Slobnovia is in a financial mess! I've had to rededicate all my resources from funding my cold steam powered adult toys to refinancing an entire country! But I have a solution!" she cackled madly.

Bob noticed the wild look in her eyes and started to edge away in case he needed to run. "Do I want to know why Slobnovia is in financial hot water?"

Alyx looked up with tears in her eyes. "It's terrible, with Draco and Severus out on their world wide Who who hunt, no one is minding the store back at home. The dastardly Harry Potter has organized a general strike among the workers and is demanding free donuts and more breaks for sex! That pervert. But I have a solution to save the country," she announced proudly.

"And what would that be?"

"Merchandising!" Alyx exclaimed. "We're going to do a spin off on the popular 'where's Waldo' series, only it'll be 'Where's Who Who'."

Alyx held up a shirt with a picture of hundreds of people, including a tiny Who who wearing a sombrero.

Bob sighed and raised his eyes skyward, "Would it be too much to ask that for once we have a normal disclaimer where we tell the people that we don't own Harry Potter or the Dragon Riders of Pern?"

Alyx turned away. "Not impressed eh? How about this?" She reached into a box and pulled out a smaller box. "Sweet Who Whos, the breakfast cereal!" she proclaimed! "Little frosted crunchy Who whos in milk."

She paused and thought about that for a moment. "We may need to rework that idea some."

Bob sighed and walked away. "There's got to be a better way of doing disclaimers," he muttered. "Enjoy the chapter while I ponder that question folks."

---

Tact is the art of making a point without making an enemy.

- Sir Issac Newton

Ministry of Magic, Office of the Deputy Minister and staff, October 15th...

Albus looked up from the papers on his desk and frowned. His fellow undersecretary, Alejandro Croaker, was sitting at his desk scowling like a late August thundercloud.

"Alejandro, what has you so upset today?"

Sir William glanced up from his computer and looked over at the man.

"It's nothing I can put a solid finger on, Albus, but I am getting worried. Lately I've been hearing rumors and vague stories that suggest that some of our pure blood families might be contemplating some sort of action against the Ministry. You know how angry many of them were when the Wizengamot was dissolved."

Sir William frowned and leaned over his desk. "You think we have a problem?"

Croaked threw a pen angrily down on his desk. "That's just it, Sir William! I do, but I have no proof to back it up."

Albus sighed and shook his head.

Sir William looked down at his desk. One of the things he had learned was that his fellow co-workers relied more on 'gut instincts' than any other people he knew. It was something that seemed to be endemic to wizards. In the face of little or no evidence, they made assumptions that often turned out correct.

Sir William had learned that it would be folly to ignore any warnings from either of these two men. He looked up and turned to Croaker. "Inform our DMLE director of your suspicions, Alejandro. Let director Shacklebolt and Chief Inspector Stokes do their job and see if they can't dig up some proof. With even just a little solid evidence I can ask for additional MOD support."

Croaker nodded. "I'll speak to Shacklebolt straight away."

Sir William looked at Albus and smiled thinly. "All right, I know that when Alejandro has a problem, you usually have one as well. What do you have for me?"

Albus smiled and shook his head. "Not so much a problem, but you should be aware that our Weyr has hired on a large group of elves who were discharged from service. I don't know what the Weyr is using them for but I do know they already had five and were very happy with their help. Undoubtedly these new elves will be able to help them with their plans to expand to two new Weyrs this year."

Sir William nodded unhappily. A large number of old time families had discharged their elves when the Ministry had mandated that they had to be paid and it was illegal to abuse them. "Do we know how many elves were let go?"

Albus shook his head. "No, sir, but I suspect if we ask some of our Ministry elves, we may be able to locate more."

"Try to do that, Albus. Once we have an idea of how many we're dealing with, then we'll see what we can do to help them."

Albus nodded and turned back to his desk. He reached over to his computer and very carefully pressed the "on" button. The machine was turned on just twice a day to check email, usually from Remus or Harry and then he'd turn it off.

Sir William hid his smile as he watched Albus, who seemed more than a little awed by a not so special desktop computer. It was little different than any of the thousands of machines owned by the government, but the wizards seemed to think otherwise. He was almost tempted to ask Albus if he felt there was some sort of genie inside the box.

Shaking his head, he turned back to his machine and fired up his own email program. He wanted to make sure the Prime Minister know about Croaker's concerns, even if it was just a preliminary heads up.

Campbeltown Weyr, October 20th...

Harry appeared over the Weyr, tired and wanting nothing more than something to eat and about ten hours of sleep. He'd just come back from personally visiting Condron and Maziang. Ten of the Weyr's elves were now at Maziang, setting up the greenhouses and helping to make the rider's quarters more comfortable.

Susan had been right, he thought to himself. The quarters were little more than mud huts, but like Ronan pointed out, the people of Maziang thought they were great. It all boils down to what you're used to, I guess.

Maziang had been awkward for Harry. The installation of the modern muggle greenhouses had caught the people of the village by surprise and they were more than a bit shocked by the act of generosity.

Condron was an entirely different story. It was like the difference between night and day. The American federal government had thrown the full weight of its support into the project. As a result, buildings were going up in record time. The old airbase was being sectioned like Campbeltown, with a NASA run research facility at one end of the base. Facilities for classrooms were going up near the hangars and administration building.

Harry circled high above the Weyr on Cheki and looked down with an approving eye. They were still working on constructing the research center and power test station, but all in all, things were looking well for the Weyr and the dragons.

"I know those thoughts, Harry. You're planning something," Cheki said.

"I am," he replied with a smile. "Do you remember the headache we had with Ambassador Poulsen?"

Cheki rumbled with laughter. "I remember he fainted when I met him."

Harry laughed. The tall, well built blond had squeaked like a ten year old girl and fainted right there on the tarmac. "Yes, but asides from that, it took a lot of effort to get him to understand what we had to offer. If we have to do that with every Ambassador, it's going to take forever."

"I can see that, but the idea of dragons who think is new to people. The wizards knew about thinking creatures, but the rest of the world did not."

Harry nodded, then he absently summoned his notebook from the saddlebag. He opened the book and frowned, with the wind whipping around as they circled the Weyr there was no way he was going to be able to write anything down! He looked around in irritation.

Cheki rumbled heartily and Harry just knew his eyes were spinning with mirth. Sighing, he shoved the book back into his bag. As soon as he did, Cheki folded his wings and dove for the ground. Harry whooped with joy at the high speed dive.

The average non-bonded dragon was capable of sustaining a steady flight of two hundred miles per hour. But the bonded dragons were larger and faster in the air. Cheki was capable of nearly two hundred and sixty miles per hour sustained level flight and he could easily hit over four hundred in a dive. At Sir Robert's request, Harry and Cheki managed to maintain the high speed for a single hour before Cheki reported discomfort and getting tired.

Comaloth, also a Horntail, was able to do two hundred and forty miles an hour and even Chapman's Kirteth was capable of two hundred and ten miles an hour. In fact, it was the Vipertooths like Kirteth that alerted the Weyr to the fact that the riders had faster dragons.

Cheki's wings snapped open and he flared to a perfect touch down that left Harry's heart pounding in his chest.

"Now you can write in your little book," Cheki said, still rumbling with amusement.

Harry gently dropped to the ground and paused to lay his head against his dragon for a moment. "You're the best," he murmured.

The large dragon turned his head on his long neck and looked at his rider fondly.

After a moment, Harry stepped away. "I think I better go see Sir Robert about this, Cheki."

The large dragon nodded. "I'll go see what's happening in the lounge," he offered.

"You just want to go look at the female dragons," he said, grinning.

The lounge was a new addition to the Weyr and it sat between Hangar Six and Seven. When Narth and the other dragons were brought to the Weyr in the hollowed out mobile homes, the discarded trailers were parked between the two buildings. Then Dobby noticed them one day and he and the elves got together and pushed the trailers together, then knocked out the walls between them.

Remus added space enlarging charms and sealing spells to keep the buildings together. When it was complete, the dragons had a place they could lounge around in, much like their riders. Harry knew it wouldn't be unusual for Comaloth to be telling one of her stories in the lounge. A stereo had also been installed, but at the moment the dragons had to ask an elf to change the station for them.

It wasn't unusual to find several elves using the lounge area also and Harry had told Dobby that it was fine for them to bring in some furniture for the elves to sit on.

The magical riders affectionately dubbed the building, Hangar Six and three quarters.

Dragon memory, according to Sir Robert, wasn't quite eidetic, but it was mighty close. Comaloth seemed to have a knack for remembering what Hermione read and if that wasn't embarrassing enough, Comaloth revealed that the voices she used for the different parts came from Hermione.

To Harry's extreme embarrassment, he discovered one day while listening to Comaloth that often Hermione would use Harry's voice to the lead male part.

Harry took off at a distance eating jog, while Cheki went over to the lounge to see what was happening among the dragons.

Sir Robert looked up from the paper he was reading when he heard Harry cough from his doorway.

"Harry! Do come in, lad. What can I do for you?"

Harry entered and sat down. "I was thinking about the problem we had with Ambassador Poulsen and I realized that it was very likely we'd have to repeat that same encounter with dozens of other ambassadors as an opening move towards informing their government. Am I wrong?"

Sir Robert blinked and then he ruefully nodded. "I fear you are more right than you know. It's a difficult thing we're asking people to believe." He reached for his distance glasses and put them on, then he gave Harry a long look. "You look like you have an idea."

"I do, I'm just not sure how to go about it. If we wanted to bring a bunch of people here to introduce them to dragons, we know we just can't have a dragon pop up or they'll faint like Ambassador Poulsen did. Why can't we be more polished about it?" Harry asked.

"Polished?"

"Explaining to Ambassador Poulsen was a right mess. Even telling him before hand, he still fainted when he met Spath and Chekiath. Why not ease them into it? Make a video that explains dragons, and the Hot Rocks and how dragons are intelligent. We bring people here to let them watch the video, then we answer questions before introducing them to a dragon."

"Harry," Sir Robert said gently, "having a professionally made video would risk the secret getting out. A production like that would need to be planned and a professional company could have twenty or more people on the project."

Harry looked down and he sighed heavily. "I didn't know that. I guess it's a dumb idea after all," he muttered.

"No, the idea is a good one. The real question is, can we make it ourselves?"

Harry frowned as he looked up "I don't know," he replied. "I could ask the riders and see if anyone wants to tackle it, but wouldn't we need special cameras and such? "

"I don't think so, but we will need some other equipment. I'll ask around about video production if you are willing to see about getting someone to do the work."

Harry stood. "I'll go do that now. Maybe Lee would be interested. Thank you, Sir Robert."

"Lee? Lee Jordan? Why him?" asked Sir Robert.

"I was asking Lord Mills about the Prime Minister's Office of Public Relations. I was thinking we'd need someone like that and, well out of all of our riders, Lee is about the easiest person to talk to. I was considering asking if he'd like to handle that. It's no secret that his talents are more artistic and people oriented than, say, someone like Wayne or Millicent."

Sir Robert leaned back in his chair and thought for a moment. Lee Jordan was a very popular person in the Weyr who was constantly thinking up minor pranks or stunts to make people laugh. He would make an excellent spokesman for the Weyr once they went public.

"I think Lee would be a good choice, but try to get one of the non-wizards involved as well," he offered.

Harry nodded. It made sense to involve someone that was as at least familiar with the technology.

"Thank you, Sir Robert," he repeated.

Harry waved and walked from the office feeling better about his idea. He had visions of trying to introduce dragons to twenty people at a time and watching them faint, or run screaming. He really, really wanted to avoid that. It upset the dragons!

Hangar Two, Campbeltown Weyr, November 3rd...

Harry stood on the stage with one thumb hooked into his belt. He wore his flight suit, which was his preferred mode of dress these days. Lord Mills appeared in the large open area behind the desks and waved to him. He nodded in acknowledgment.

Luna and Emma sat behind a table piled high with shoe boxes containing the basic flight suit, jacket, goggles and handbook. The basic kit would be handed out to the candidates and a more advanced equipment pack would be given to the riders after they impressed.

"Nervous?" asked Ronan.

Harry's wing second sat on a stool nearby, watching Harry as he glanced at his watch and paced.

Harry glanced over to him. "A little, I guess, but not for the reasons you think. Draco's handling the Condron group, and Maziang doesn't need an orientation. Besides, Norendrath and Spath delivered the basic kits this morning. I guess I'm more nervous about what's happening that I don't see."

Ronan chuckled. "Relax. Draco will be fine. If he needs help, he'll have Sinnath call you. And I'm certain Lobsang has everything in hand at Maziang. I'll bet you ten pounds he gets picked as Weyrleader for Maziang."

Harry smiled. He truly liked Lobsang. His quiet strength would serve the Weyr well. The boy was humble and self effacing, much like Harry, but he was also strong when he needed to be.

"No bet," Harry replied with laugh. "My money was on Lobsang as soon as I met him."

A noise drew their attention. The motor coach had arrived and the candidates were slowly filing into the room. There were sixteen magical candidates and forty four mundane candidates. Harry spotted Lisa Turpin moving confidently to the front and he nodded to her.

He stepped up to the edge of the stage and smiled broadly. "There are drinks at the table in the back. Help yourselves. Once everyone is settled, we'll begin."

Everyone shuffled around and helped themselves to a drink, then found seats around the room.

"Before I begin, let me state that you are here with the permission of your parents, who have been informed of what's involved. What you are about to learn is covered under the Official Secrets Act and you may not speak to anyone about what you learn here. Does everyone understand that? And is everyone willing to abide by that rule?"

He paused and looked around, then he nodded in satisfaction. No one seemed to want to back out. He shot Doctor Sheppard a wry grin. The doctor had just arrived and stood holding a bottle of smelling salts in his hand.

"You people are here because you are special, even if you don't believe it. Each of you have been watched secretly in order to attempt to understand what type of person you are. You'll be happy to know that you've all passed that test. If you hadn't, you wouldn't be here." Harry held up a hand when he noted some scowls in his audience. "I know it sounds bad, but believe me, you've been given a great compliment. Let me explain why we've done this.

"To put it simply, each one of you has a genetic predisposition that will afford you a unique opportunity."

When the scowls faded, he continued. "My name is Harry Potter and I'm the Weyrleader of Campbeltown Weyr. I welcome you to our Weyr and hope that in the coming days you will understand just what you've been offered."

"Now, let's start off with two basic facts that you need to believe. Luna, introduce yourself please," Harry said.

Luna smiled and stood up. "I'm Luna Lovegood, Trandieth's rider and I'm a witch." She waved her wand and a cloud formed over the heads of the candidates, then broke up into thousands of sparkling butterflies before fading away. She'd thought about using spiders, but really didn't want to incite panic among the potentials.

Harry held up his hand. "Fact number one, magic exists. It's not something you can learn. You either have the ability or you don't. We are telling you this because some of the people sitting at the desks next to you are magical. But magic is not why we here today. I tell you about it now because the person next to you may be magical and they do not need to hide their abilities from you. You'll learn more about magic as time goes on.

"We know that you are, for the most part, a person willing to accept the possibility of magic and fantasy creatures. A lot of you spend your time reading about elves and trolls and dragons. In fact, we know a number of you have even spent time writing about such creatures.

"Ronan, would you introduce yourself please?"

Ronan stood and smiled at the candidates. "I'm Ronan Clark, Wing Second and Garanoth's rider. Sorry, I can't make any butterflies, though if you give me a net, I may be able to catch a few for you."

The crowd laughed nervously.

Harry waited until they settled down. "Did anyone notice the common statement both Luna and Ronan made?" he asked.

"Something about a rider?" said a girl up front.

Several heads nodded in agreement.

"That's right," exclaimed Harry. "Both of them are riders. You see, humans are not alone on this planet. There are other intelligence species and recently, in fact, barely a year ago, another one of those intelligent species awoke from eons of silence."

"Oh, come on. You're making it sound like there are aliens among us," scoffed one boy. Several laughed nervously and one boy even did a fair imitation of the theme to Twilight Zone. Slowly the candidates realized that no one on the stage was laughing.

"Alien is an ugly word," Harry said softly. "I would prefer to say that they are just people who don't look like us."

"You're serious?" exclaimed a girl.

"Look around you," Ronan said quietly. "You're on an old military base after having been picked up by a luxury motor coach and driven here after signing nearly a dozen government secrecy documents. All around you are buildings and construction representing millions of pounds of investment. Would we go to all this trouble to pull some crazy joke on you?"

The girl blinked in shock and leaned back in her chair.

"Let's clear up a few things first," Harry said. "More than eleven thousand years ago, a race of beings came to this planet. They were here while our ancestors were still huddling in caves, afraid of the moon. You will recognize them instantly because they are found in our mythology all the way back to the dawn of civilization. In the coming days, you'll learn their full history, but for now I want to get to the reason why you are here."

Harry nodded to Remus, who created an illusion on the stage of a dragon.

The candidates took a gasping breath.

"Dragons!" exclaimed the girl who had questioned Ronan.

"Telepathic dragons," Ronan replied smugly.

The girl looked between Harry and Ronan, then her gaze settled on the illusion again. "Why telepathic?" she asked.

"Because I can't make sounds like you do," Chekiath replied to everyone.

The candidates looked around in alarm and Harry smirked, then pointed to the open area behind them.

They turned to see Chekiath, Garanoth and Trandieth watching them. Several candidates keeled over in a dead faint.

Harry did a quick count. "Six. Who had six?"

"Michelle, I think," Ronan replied. "She gets the pot."

"Damn, I thought there would be more," Harry said with a sigh.

Sirius had run around the previous night with a betting pool on how many would faint when they saw the dragons. Harry, to his regret, had bet fourteen.

Issac sighed and walked around waving his little bottle of smelling salts under noses. He gave Harry a sour look, but even he couldn't think of a better way of introducing dragons to people.

Harry twirled his wand causing a whistle and the candidates reluctantly turned back to him. "In a little bit you'll be able to meet with the dragons and speak to them first hand. But for now, please bear with us. The quicker we can finish, the quicker you can meet the dragons and talk to them."

Ronan stepped up to the edge of the stage and looked around. He was older than Harry by more than a year and he looked older, despite Harry's tendency to have a heavy five o'clock shadow. "I'm a dragon rider," he said with a quiet dignity. "I am bonded to a dragon in such a way that my dragon is the most important person in my life. Once, before I impressed Garanoth, I seriously considered taking up Aeronautical Engineering. Now, I am now part of something that has never been done before, and while I will go to school for engineering, I'll use that training for my dragon and my Weyr."

Harry walked over and clapped a hand on Ronan's shoulder. The pair exchanged a look then Harry turned to the candidates.

"This is what you're being offered. To be part of something unique in all of human experience. In return, the Weyr will shelter and support you. Scholarships will be available to every rider."

The girl who had been questioning Ronan looked puzzled. "Who's in charge of this? Is this a government project?"

"Lord Mills, if you would?"

James nodded and walked up to the front of the room, then he turned and faced the candidates. "This is not precisely a government project, although the government is heavily involved. The land you stand on is semi-autonomous from Scotland. Officially, I am here to act as an official liaison between the government and the Weyr, but Harry is Weyrleader."

"Him?" exclaimed the girl. "Why him?"

"Harry is The Weyrleader," Chekiath said, breaking into the conversation again. "He freed us from the time of the beasts and protected us. He has fought and killed to protect dragons and every dragon in the world recognizes him as The Weyrleader. Unlike the other riders, Harry can speak to all dragons and he is my rider."

Harry looked embarrassed by Cheki's pronouncement. "Through accident or fate, I have been placed into the role of Weyrleader. It was not my choice to be what I am, but sometimes life doesn't give us choices, only needs that must be met.

"As a rider, you will have a lot of responsibility to care for your dragon. It is a true partnership. While you tend to the needs of your dragon, your dragon tends to your needs, as well. In this life, you will never find a bond like the one you'll have with your dragon."

He paused and took a deep breath. "Ronan is responsible for his dragon. As a Wing Second, he is also responsible for ensuring that his wing is operating normally. I am responsible for all dragons worldwide and their riders."

The girl looked up at Harry for a moment longer, then she sat back down.

Harry was definitely sending mixed signals to the candidates. He was shorter than most boys his age, but his five o'clock shadow and broad shoulders made him seem older, as did an air of confidence that was unusual for his age.

Harry watched the girl for a moment longer, then he looked up at the candidates. "In two days time we will be flying, via dragon, to the hatching Weyr in Greenland. There you will be given an opportunity to come to know the dragons better and you'll learn more about them. Until then, there will be some simple classes to get you used to flying on dragon back and you'll always have a chance to speak with the dragons anytime you wish.

"We'll break for lunch shortly. After you've eaten, you'll be directed to the candidate dormitories. Mrs Emma Granger - stand up Emma," he said with a smile. "Emma is the chaperone for the girl's dorm. Her husband, Dan, is the Weyr dentist and the chaperone for the boy's dorm. They will be be available both here and at the Hatching Weyr, but there you will also find other chaperones who we'll introduce when we get there."

Emma stood and waved.

"You'll note Emma's been hiding behind a pile of boxes, along with Luna. I'd like you each to come up now and get a box from Emma, then sign the sheet Luna has, acknowledging you got the kit. Inside the box you'll find a thermal flight suit, jacket, gloves, goggles and a handbook. I want everyone to study that book. Read it, then reread it. And once you feel that you couldn't possibly learn any more from it, read it again. You'll need to know that information like you know the back of your hand."

Harry nodded to Emma.

She motioned to the candidates sitting close to the stage. "Come on up and get your kits," she called with a bright smile.

Harry walked over to Ronan. "First contact," he muttered

Ronan looked at him with interest. "Eh? What?"

Harry grimaced. "Introducing people to dragons is bad enough, but introducing potential candidates is even harder. I mean I can't say, 'This dragon wants to be your lifelong companion and will be closer to you than anyone you choose for a spouse.' Any person with a lick of sense will figure it out and start running."

Ronan laughed. "No they won't, Harry. Look at them. Every one of them has dreamed of magic and dragons. I was the same way, but I was also into science fiction, which I thought was more likely to happen. I will tell you this much. By dinner, every one of these candidates will know what's coming and I'll bet not one will ask to go home. I knew very shortly after you introduced the dragons and I couldn't wait to meet the dragon who would be mine."

"I knew you were coming for me, Ronan," Garanoth said. "I glad you decided to risk it."

Ronan's blushed and his ears turned bright red. Harry laughed and clapped him on his shoulder.

"Well, let's get this parade moving. We still have a lot of ground to cover today."

Ronan nodded and they both turned back to the candidates who were getting their basic kits. Harry noted with approval that Luna was questioning each magical candidate about their wands. They would all be issued temporary wands for now. Those with heartstring cores would be asked to put their old wands away. All of the magical riders would be taught to craft a wand using a scale from their own dragon.

The Leaky Cauldron, November 4th...

"I'm telling you this isn't right!" exclaimed one patron. "So these muggles think they can order us around? Since when?"

"Since a whole lot of people got themselves killed thinking they could attack the goblins. I was 'ere when the goblins came outa their building, along with over ten thousand muggles all armed with their guns! Can you fight goblins and muggles? Not me, I say," declared Tom, the inn keeper. "If yer smart you'll keep yer head down and follow their rules. They aren't demanding anything outrageous."

"Bah! Yer daft, Tom," declared Tobias. "Soon the muggles will be insisting you use their toys and trinkets and throw away your wand!"

Several of the patrons exclaimed in dismay and Tom's expression darkened.

"'Ere now! The muggles aren't looking for any such thing!" retorted Tom. "I hear tell they built us a school in Hogsmeade that'll be free to all children. Sure, they'll teach them muggle things, but I 'erd they are working with McGonagall and Dumbledore hisself to include magic in what they teach."

Tobias Bunniford glared at the inn keeper. "You mark my words, Tom, there'll come a day when they will take away your business and make you go beg for your meals!"

"Bah! Get on with ya, Bunniford. Ya bin sniffing too much of your chocolate, if you ask me!" exclaimed Tom.

"Too much of your Fire Whiskey, Tom!" shouted another patron and everyone laughed.

Bunniford, owner of Bunniford confections and the proud manufacturer of Chocolate Frogs, growled and stomped from the room to the general laughter of the other patrons.

In one darkened corner of the building, a young man watched the entire scene with intense interest. He smiled thinly and leaned a little forward in his chair to reach for his drink. The lamplight glinted off his red hair, but no one paid him any attention. He was just another patron in for a wee bit before heading home for the night.

Chinese Embassy, London, November 5th...

Wei Fong looked up from the papers, then he glanced down at them again. He had been warned about this particular arrival, but it still bothered him. He was chief of station and unused to the people back in Beijing ordering operations without consulting him.

"Comrade Colonel," he said slowly, "I understand your area of interest lies somewhere on the Scottish coast. My department is ready to assist you in any way we can."

Colonel Jin Tan Mu nodded, expecting no less from the Comrade Captain who ran the station. He lit a cigarette and took a deep drag. "My team will be arriving in the next week. As you are aware, we have sent a large number people to England in the last month. Most of them are decoys who will be touring the country and examining facilities that should distract the Imperial secret police. Meanwhile, my real teams will be looking closely to find out what happened to Agent K.

"The Ministry of State Security feel that the extra hands will confuse the imperialists, while we try to locate the facility which caused the capture of our agent."

"Haven't we been able to ascertain where he was exposed yet?"

The Colonel shook his head. "It is our fear that elements within British society may have resorted to unclean methods to remove the memories of our man. The few conversations we've been able to have with him reveal he has no memory of being caught out. All he knows is he was recalled to America, arrested upon his arrival and charged with espionage."

Wei Fong's eyes widened and he swallowed nervously. The communist government of China was aware of the magical world. It was a closely guarded secret that, back in the fifties, the wizards of China found themselves backed against a wall as the communists rounded them up and killed them. A small group took over a full division of tanks and forced the commanders to destroy another nearby People's Army division. Then Comrade Mao was visited by some Chinese Wizards, who told him to stop or they would set the PRA to fighting itself.

The Wizards of China were isolationists to an extreme. They wanted nothing more than to be left alone, although now they closely watched the government and a few times had stepped in to remind them that they had the power to hurt the government badly. Likewise, the muggles had the ability to hurt them badly and the man sitting across from Wei Fong was one of those who had hurt the Chinese Wizards very badly. He was one of few muggles they feared.

An irrational paranoia was instilled in the communist government and along with that paranoia came a bit of fear. They learned to deal with the wizards harshly and without mercy when they were found. They also learned to be extra sensitive to magical happenings. If it couldn't be explained rationally, they had no problem attributing the incident to magic.

Among the in-the-know elite, the term "unclean" was used to refer to any magical interference. Meanwhile, the Chinese wizards buried themselves very deep inside Chinese society. There are been several clashes of violence on both sides. It was rumored that the man who stood before him was responsible for killing over four thousand Chinese wizards by ordering a suspected enclave firebombed with napalm.

The man was considered highly dangerous, even by his own superiors. And now he stood before Wei Fong and outranked him. Wei Fong was on very thin ground here. The Colonel was obviously sent by the Ministry of State Security because he had experience in dealing with unclean elements.

"I hope you won't think it presumptuous of me, Comrade Colonel, but I have taken the liberty of preparing some material that might help you," Wei Fong offered. He hadn't had much warning about his arrival, but in the two days that he did have, he had compiled a long list of possible sites of interest.

Colonel Jin Tan Mu arched a single eyebrow at the comrade captain's audacity, then he nodded slightly.

Wei Fong pressed a button on his desk and a young woman entered carrying a rolled up poster and a thick sheath of papers. He took the papers from the woman, who then turned and left the room as quick as she could.

Wei Fong unrolled a large map and hung it from his wall. "The background briefing said our agent had been originally tasked to visit a facility on the coast. This map marks all the military and military/industrial complexes within fifteen miles of the coast. As you can see, they are color coded based on the activity at the site," he said, then he handed over the stack of papers. "Each item is described in the paperwork."

Wei Fong turned back to the colonel. "I'm sorry that it probably isn't complete. For all we know, our agent might have been to a facility we don't know about."

The colonel snuffed out his cigarette and he looked over the papers, then the map. It would save him a lot of time and effort, but it wouldn't do to appear too impressed.

"This is adequate," he said slowly. "I have been told your station was efficient and I can see this is mostly true."

Wei Fong nodded and swallowed nervously again. "Will there be anything else, Comrade Colonel?"

The Colonel smiled thinly. "I take it the girl that brought the map has been properly trained?"

Wei Fong nodded, knowing what the colonel was asking. Many of the female staff had been trained as office personnel and as entertainment for the senior male staff. "She is more than diligent in her job, comrade."

"Excellent. You know where I'm staying. Send her to my suite tonight after twenty hundred hours."

Wei Fong nodded. "I will do that, comrade."

The Colonel placed the stack of papers in his briefcase, then waited calmly while Wei Fong rolled up the map and placed it into a plastic container before handing it to him.

He left the office without a single glance back and Wei Fong shivered slightly. He had met dangerous people before, but the Comrade Colonel represented a whole new level of danger.

Office of the Director, MLE, Ministry of Magic, November 5th...

Kingsley Shacklebolt looked up from the large desk as the door opened and his guest entered. He was uncomfortable in the position, but he was one of the few senior aurors who had returned to work for the Ministry after the muggles had taken over.

Normally he shared the office with a senior inspector from CID, but the man had gone home a little early today.

He looked at the man sitting across the desk from him with a critical eye. His face was hidden by a charm, but he knew who the man was.

"I received your message and I have to admit I was very surprised by it," Kingsley said.

"I know I haven't done much to earn your trust, but I am grateful you're willing to listen to me," replied the cloaked figure.

Kingsley shrugged. "I'm listening," he said neutrally.

"You're aware that there are elements in our population that are... unhappy with events?"

Kingsley nodded.

"I found myself in an interesting position the other day as I was approached by someone who seems to be gathering supporters for an anti-ministry group," the man said softly.

Kingsley arched an eyebrow. He had heard rumors, but he wasn't aware that it had gotten that far.

"Why bring this to me? Your own boss is placed higher up in the Ministry than I am. He could bring it to... the others easier than I could."

The man nodded. "He could, but it's not his job. This is an DMLE matter. I understand you have to bring this information to the powers that be and you'll have to reveal who I am."

Kingsley started and he could make out the smile on the man. "I am thought to be a fool Kingsley and I do have some things to atone for, but I'm not stupid. I figure you knew who sent that message within an hour of getting it."

Kingsley nodded but he had no intention of telling the man it took four hours to lift the signature and find a match for it.

"So what do you want then?" asked Kingsley.

"I want your support. Right now this group seems pretty tame, but I'm sure You-Know-Who seemed really tame at one time too. I'll pass along what information I can. In return, your department helps if I need something. Or if I need protection," replied the man.

"And of course you'll want a guarantee of not being charged," Kingsley said sardonically.

The man nodded. "I am here to help you. It stands to reason that if I'm helping you, I would not be prosecuted."

Kingsley nodded. No law enforcement office would prosecute an informant unless absolutely necessary. "Very well, I will make arrangements for you to receive a portkey you can wear that will take you to a safe house with a healer nearby. I'll also arrange for an owl drop for your messages. For what it's worth, I think you're doing the right thing and when this is over I'll be glad to bring you into the department openly or endorse you to the other departments."

The man blinked in surprise, then he bowed his head in thanks. "I will be in touch," he replied, then he stood and slipped from the room.

Kingsley blew out an explosive breath, then he turned and wrote up a quick message on parchment and sent it off to Croaker, asking for a meeting. He needed to let Croaker know what was happening.

Hatching Weyr, Disko Island, November 5th...

The bonded riders of Campbeltown Weyr, plus sixty extra dragons, appeared over Disko to the tumultuous sound of one hundred and twenty dragons trumpeting in welcome. Harry glanced over towards Ronan, who grinned and waved.

All of the dragons were terribly excited. These were the first of the candidates to arrive at the Hatching weyr and the egg mothers below couldn't contain themselves.

"Cheki, let's land our candidates, then tell Nokrenth and Ralaninth to bring theirs," he sent silently. He could have easily told the other dragons, but with Chekiath taking a more assertive role, he decided to let Chekiath give the order to bring the candidates to the Weyr.

"Yes, Harry," Chekiath replied, then he banked around, coming out of formation while the others spiraled in for a landing. Cheki knew Harry wanted to remain airborne until the other Weyrs arrived and landed. "The egg mothers are very excited."

Harry grinned. "Yeah, but between you and me, I'm excited too, mate. Soon we'll have three Weyrs."

"The other candidates are arriving now," Cheki announced. A moment later the dragons below trumpeted their welcome again. Eighty eight more dragons appeared in the skies around him. He grinned and waved to Lobsang, who sat astride Nokrenth with Master Jangbu. The Maziang contingent of riders had been a subject of controversy until Harry stepped in and explained the issue to Lobsang and Master Jangbu. At first it had been all male, then Harry had to explain that they needed to have a mix of genders.

It had taken a full day of arduous explaining, and finally Nokrenth told the old Dragon Handler that he couldn't allow an all male group and they would have to accept at least half female candidates. Jangbu sighed and threw up his hands and agreed. It was counter to their culture to allow women equal roles, but they accepted the directive of the Weyrleader.

Harry had returned to the Weyr that day with a pounding headache. Garanoth and Ronan, who had accompanied them, explained to the riders exactly what Harry had been doing all day away from the Weyr. While he explained, Harry crawled into bed and hoped his headache would be gone the next morning. When morning rolled around, he found himself being thanked by every female rider in the Weyr for standing up for their rights.

He didn't have the heart to tell them he wasn't standing up for equal rights as much as he would have hated seeing what would happen at Maziang when their dragons rose.

Harry waited for all of the candidates to land and dismount before he landed Chekiath. The adults and riders were directing everyone towards the Hatching Chamber. It was really the only place big enough to sit everyone. The escape chamber used by the goblins wasn't set up with seating so it couldn't be used, even if it was much larger than the hatching chamber.

Harry stood by the chamber entrance and waited as people climbed into the stands normally used for guests and spectators.

"There's so many of them," Hermione said, moving to stand next to him.

"Our next generation. We'll be doing it like this for at least another twenty years," he replied.

She cocked her head to look at him. "What do you mean?"

He smiled at her. "Are you planning on having a child every year?"

"No!" she exclaimed, horrified at the thought.

He laughed. "I daresay most of the girls would agree with you. And I know I do. But that means it'll be at least sixteen years before we manage to start providing Weyr bred candidates and probably closer to twenty or more before we're supplying most of the candidates. We'll still have to search out candidates among the population, but it'll be twenty years before the bulk of them come from the Weyr."

Hermione blinked, then she looked over at the crowd settling into place. With the riders and the adults, there were nearly two hundred people in the stands.

"I hadn't thought of that," she murmured. It shocked her that Harry was thinking so far in advance, but she also realized with the Ministry now under Crown control, he would be able to consider more far reaching issues.

He chuckled again. "Come on. Let's go welcome everyone to Disko."

Hermione nodded and walked over to the stands, while Harry carefully walked to a central point near the stands. Behind him, the Egg Mothers filed in and went directly to their eggs.

Without thinking, Harry cast a wandless amplification on his voice. He turned to watch the dragons still filing into the chamber, then turned back to the humans, who watched him expectantly.

"Welcome to Disko Island, the hatching weyr for the dragons of Earth," he said softly, then he waited for a moment, watching the Maziang contingent. When Lobsang nodded he continued. "Our group of candidates from Maziang in Tibet are not fluent in English. If you'd like to talk to them, do so around a dragon and the dragon will translate for you."

Harry turned to the group from Tibet. "Likewise, speak to someone around a dragon and let them translate."

When everyone nodded, he grinned at them. "This Weyr is the oldest known weyr in the world. We think this is the place where Sidraneth laid her clutch of eggs, close to one hundred of them. As a weyr, this place had been abandoned and reclaimed many times over the ages. And now it will be the place where your dragons will be hatched."

Harry glanced over his shoulder and noted all of the Egg Mothers were present, then he turned back to the crowd. "Tomorrow we will have a session in here where you will meet with the Egg Mothers. Talk with them, get to know them and where they come from. Only twenty five eggs come from America, Scotland or Tibet. The rest come from all over the world. In this way, each weyr is contributing to the effort."

He paused again and waited while the candidates looked around eagerly.

"If an Egg Mother invites you to help her, she will allow you to handle the egg, which we hope will initiate the bonding process early. There are one hundred and forty candidates and one hundred and twenty six eggs. If you are not chosen to be help an Egg Mother this time, you will be brought back for the next impression sometime in mid February. We will continue to present you as a candidate for as long as you are eligible."

Again he waited while the dragons translated. "I am the Weyrleader. My name is Harry Potter and I am also a wizard. I am the Weyrleader because I can speak to any dragon on the planet and they will follow my directions." he said, introducing himself. "All of the candidates from Tibet are magical, like myself. Some of the candidates from Britain are magical and roughly a third of the American candidates are magical.

"Magic is nice and you are encouraged to help your Weyrmates out by using your magic, but magic in itself does not make you special. Here, you will all learn to be Riders. If you impress, no matter what country you come from, magical or non-magical, you will be, first and foremost, a dragon riders. Your first loyalty will always be to your dragon, your second loyalty will be to your Weyr, your fellow riders and to dragons everywhere. After that, you will be wizards or non-magical, American, British or Tibetan."

He paused to let the information sink in, then asked all of the chaperones to stand so that everyone could get a good look at them.

"We do not have a formal bedding arrangement like in our first impression. The tents with a blue entrances are for boys, the pink entrances are for the girls. I'll let you go now to get settled. Riders, you'll use your old quarters until after the impression."

Harry stepped back and the people in the stands stood and started heading for the exit with the chaperones urging them towards the tents. He wasn't surprised to see each group was clustering around the adults they knew from their home Weyr.

"It is a powerful group, Weyrleader."

Harry turned and saw Momnarth standing nearby. She stood protectively over a small nest containing two eggs. Several other dragons had an extra egg which accounted for the six eggs over the expected count.

"It is, Momnarth. I look at them and can see we've got a good group," Harry replied. He glanced around at all of the Egg Mothers, who were busy tending their precious eggs. "How are the Egg Mothers?"

"Excited and nervous. They are reaching out and testing the candidates, trying to see who would be acceptable to them."

Harry nodded. Spath had told him the Egg Mothers would know who would be best for their egg. He couldn't explain the mechanics involved, but Harry was confident that they would find someone acceptable to them.

"I best see to our candidates, Momnarth. I'll see you tomorrow," Harry said with a nod of his head, then he turned and walked from the chamber.

"I hope I can find one as strong as The Weyrleader," murmured a Norwegian Ridgeback wistfully.

Momnarth turned towards the dragon from a Weyr in South Africa. "We got very lucky the day he impressed. It was an accident that shook the world and I doubt we'll find another as strong as The Weyrleader. The candidates are strong enough and will be good riders, that is all that matters. Our offspring will continue, protected and nurtured by their rider."

"Truly he is another like Sean Connell," another said softly, referring to the first Weyrleader on Pern. All of the Egg Mother's murmured their agreement and hoped to pick someone as strong for their offspring.

HMP Erlestoke, November 10th...

The prisoner transfer van was delayed before setting out to deliver their passenger. A last minute change in orders resulted in two members of CID Magical division re-searching the prisoner before handing him over to the transport unit.

His file had been 'sanitized' so that his crimes now appeared as mundane crimes and any possible magical items, including the collection of magical newspapers, had been confiscated. His sole magical object remaining to him was a magical inhibiting bracelet that was locked around his wrist and was disguised as a medical alert bracelet. It looked like a standard issue prison bracelet that was handed out to any inmate who had a chronic medical problem.

The van pulled into the portcullis of the prison and they waited for the outer doors to close before the transport crew exited. Two prison guards stepped out from a side door and a third accepted the paperwork. He glanced through it and nodded. Everything was in order.

"Snape, Severus, no middle name. Bastard must have been hated by his parents to get saddled with that name," muttered the supervisor. He grunted seeing the convictions. Four consecutive terms of 10 years minimum for rape of underage girls and one twenty five year term for involvement in an action that resulted in near fatal police injuries. The only out of the ordinary thing in the whole file was a note from a senior judge instructing the prison staff to never remove the prisoner's bracelet.

The supervisor closed the file and walked over to where the two guards were standing with Snape between them. He was shackled and his hands cuffed and locked to his belt. The supervisor twisted Snape's wrist to see the bracelet. He then looked into Snape's eyes with a smirk. It looked like a regular medic alert bracelet, not that they paid much attention to those things.

Snape tried to glare back at the muggle, but there was little he could do. When he had been presented before a muggle court he was offered reduced sentences if he would take a magical vow to never tell another soul about magic in any way. Not knowing how the muggle justice system worked, he agreed and took the vow, never knowing the muggles could sentence prisoners to consecutive sentences.

Snape lowered his eyes, knowing before he even tried to test his will against the supervisor that he was defeated. It had been explained to him that, at a minimum, it would be sixty five years before he saw daylight as a free man.

"Where do you want him, boss?" asked one of the guards.

The supervisor smiled. "Is there still room in Otto's cell?"

The guards laughed and nodded. Otto Monsooni was an emigrant to Britain who been convicted of killing a man suspected of murdering his nine year old daughter. He was a model prisoner as long as he didn't come into contact with anyone convicted of child molesting.

"Let's try him there for a few days before we find him something more suitable," the supervisor suggested.

"Aye, in the infirmary after Otto's done wit 'im," muttered one guard to the laughter of the others.

Snape was pulled into the building proper, broken and defeated, and absolutely certain that Potter was somehow responsible for his plight.

Administration Tent, Disko Island Weyr, November 15th...

Harry glanced down at his notes for the day's meeting, then he looked up and smiled. "Hagrid tells me that all of the Egg Mothers are doing well. Dan's had to fix a few teeth, but there was less pressure on the mothers with the candidates helping out."

Present at the meeting were Lord Mills, Hagrid, Dan and Emma Granger and the Wing Leaders, Jasper Brady and his wife Mary and Master Jangbu. Jasper Brady, at Harry's urgings, had slotted himself into the Weyr Liaison position as Lord Mills had done. Brady's wife had opted to find space for herself as a chaperone and magic tutor for the American group.

The Maziang contingent had brought no real chaperones. Culturally, it wasn't something they needed to worry about. They had, however, brought their best healer and an animal specialist, who doubled up in those roles for their candidates.

"Fortunately, I had the materials on hand," Dan murmured. "We only really had one bad case and she was much relieved when that American girl started helping with her egg."

Harry smiled gratefully at Dan, then he turned to Jasper. "How many people are standing by at Condron for the hatching?"

"Forty two in total, mostly parents, but I expect that some of them will opt to stay behind when they're faced with climbing onto dragon back. I will confess, I was more than a little apprehensive the first time I rode on a dragon. Were it not for the wards, I think I would have tried to get an international portkey made for Disko," Jasper replied. "Lord Mills, Dan Granger and myself are coordinating to record the hatching. I also have several omniculars for our use."

"Apprehensive, he says," muttered Mary Brady. "I nearly peed my pants I was so scared the first time I climbed on a dragon's back."

Jasper shot his wife an amused look. She was totally unlike Jasper in mannerism. She was very people oriented and very frank with her comments, whereas Jasper had the polish of his more than ten years in politics and government helping him.

Master Jangbu turned his white eyes towards Mary and cackled with laughter.

Harry grinned and shrugged apologetically to Mary. "I'm sorry if we didn't..."

"No, Weyrleader, it wasn't your fault," Mary said, interrupting him. "I grew up listening to the tales of how dangerous a dragon can be. I never dreamt that someday someone would ask me to sit on the shoulders of one while we teleported four thousand miles to Greenland."

"A dragon can be dangerous, Mary, but they really aren't the monsters we were led to believe," James Mills said softly.

Master Jangbu said something in his language and everyone paused, waiting for the translation.

"Master Jangbu says it is not that dragons are dangerous. All life can be dangerous. The real crime is being taught to fear something," Nokrenth said solemnly.

Harry nodded. "Wise words," he murmured, then he turned to Hagrid. "Any idea when we'll see a hatching?"

Hagrid stroked his bead for a moment, "Hatchin' isn' a precise thin', yeh understand. The eggs appear to have fully hardened. Up until the last day or two before the hatchin', the eggs are more leathery than hard like a hen's egg, then in the last two days they firm up an' become brittle. They only began hardenin' last night."

Harry glanced up at a wall calendar. "Sometime tomorrow then," he said softly. "We really don't have the room to bring in the guests early. I guess we'll have to go with our original plan and bring them in when the dragons signal it's begun."

He glanced down at his notes and smiled to himself. "Master Jangbu, you'll be pleased to know that the elves have completed their work at Maziang. The greenhouses are up and your people are planting using the seed stock we provided. Also, the rider housing has been improved upon a bit."

The elves enlarged the housing and replaced the cloth wall they had put up with a swinging wooden door for the dragons to use. Wooden planking was also installed as flooring instead of the dirt floors that were there originally. The wizards of the village knew that the areas inside the houses would need space enlarging charms and Harry had made certain they knew of spells capable of doing just that, otherwise he would have had to arrange for them to be taught the necessary spells.

They had installed three greenhouses at Maziang. Two were for potion stock, while the third was given to the village for their own use. That gesture, more than any other, surprised the people of the village. Now they would be able to grow food year round. When Lobsang asked about it, Harry told him that taking care of dragons was only half of the problem. The riders and their families also needed to be taken care of.

Harry didn't want to embarrass Lobsang or the people of Maziang but he, and so many of the riders, had been upset by the level of poverty the people of Maziang endured while caring for the dragons. May and Luna both pitched the idea of supplying an extra greenhouse and Harry readily agreed to it.

Harry looked up and realized he had missed Master Jangbu replying, so he waited for Nokrenth's translation.

"You honor us, Weyrleader. Master Jangbu prays they may be worthy of your support."

"Nokrenth, please tell Master Jangbu I have every confidence in his people and the dragons of Maziang," Harry said softly.

Master Jangbu nodded and gave Harry a huge smile.

"Well, since we're here with Nokrenth and Ralaninth listening in, I'm curious if either of the dragon elders have any ideas about who they might choose as Weyrleader?" Harry asked.

Everyone perked up and looked at Harry with interest.

"I sense that you would prefer Lowly Apprentice," Nokrenth said cautiously in reply.

Harry blinked and smiled. "Nokrenth, it is true that I favor Lobsang for the position, but please do not let that influence you. For all intents and purposes, you elder dragons will be selecting the person who will speak with my voice. He, or she, must be strong and dedicated not only to his dragon, but also to his Weyr. It is not an easy thing to be Weyrleader."

"He is strong, Weyrleader, and he shares the same love for dragons that you feel. There are few others in our group that might be suitable, but I will continue watching," Nokrenth said after a minutes silence.

Harry smiled softly. "It is your decision, my friend, and I will accept the person you choose."

He paused and waited for the conversation to be translated. When Master Jangbu nodded, he turned to the Americans. "Ralaninth, do you have any ideas?" he asked.

"I am considering two right now, Weyrleader. Barrel Chest has a strong character and he is already respected among the candidates. He is level headed, but also a bit impetuous. On the other hand, Squeaker also has a strong character and she thinks deep thoughts."

Harry blinked and looked towards Jasper Brady for some explanation.

Jasper chuckled and he pulled out a pad with a list. "I thought it would come in handy to build a list of people and their dragon appellations. Barrel Chest is Frank Taylor. His friends call him Skip, apparently because in one of his high school football games he injured his leg and skipped the last twenty yards for a touch down. He's popular with all of the candidates and very easy going. In the few days I've been able to watch them, I noted that he is constantly helping people or trying to build a sense of community among the riders."

Lord Mills smiled and leaned forward in his chair. "And Squeaker?" he asked.

Mary Brady laughed. "Kat Matthews is a witch who, on meeting her very first dragon, made a sound like a door creaking open and then she fainted. In her defense, I'll say the dragon was disillusioned and practically breathing down her neck when it popped into view. She turned around and was eyeball to eyeball with Ralaninth."

Harry chuckled. "And the deep thoughts part?"

"Kat is a very intelligent girl, Harry," Jasper replied seriously. "She's friendly and helpful, but her intelligence is on par with any genius scale you want to use. She's as popular as Skip is, but more reserved and more likely to think before jumping to action."

"Weyrleader?"

Harry looked up. "Yes, Ralaninth?"

"Can it be possible for a Weyr to have two leaders?" asked the dragon.

Harry's shocked expression was echoed among the others sitting in the room.

After a moment of silence, Jasper spoke again. "It would allow for continuity of leadership should one person get injured or worse. That's one of the things I noted about Campbeltown. There's no chain to follow should anything happen to you, Harry."

"I've never considered the possibility, but I don't see why we couldn't go for a co-leadership arrangement. Or perhaps an assistant position? Ralaninth, can I ask why you are thinking this way?" Harry asked.

"Squeaker thinks hard about things before doing. Barrel Chest sometimes jumps without looking first. Combined, they would make a powerful pair. You know when action is needed, the rest of the time you consider every move you make, Weyrleader. Together they would be almost as good as if you led us," replied the dragon.

Harry blushed and Hagrid chuckled at his discomfort. He glanced over at his friend and smiled weakly before turning back to the others. "All right, let's consider it. If we went with Skip and Kat as co-Weyrleaders, would that appear as if we were pushing them together?"

"Like as a couple?" exclaimed Mary in surprise.

Harry nodded.

"I hadn't considered that," Jasper said. "But then that's something you British still do with marriage contracts and the like. There hasn't been a contract for marriage in a hundred years in the US. So I don't think anyone is going to think that way, Harry."

Harry looked relieved, then he turned facing one wall. Everyone knew he was speaking to a dragon then. "Ralaninth, like I told Nokrenth, I will support who you pick, even if it means supporting two people."

"Thank you, Weyrleader," replied the dragon.

Harry looked back to the others. "Does anyone have anything else?"

When no one spoke his closed his notebook and they all stood and filed from the room.

Disko Island Hatching Weyr, November 16th...

Harry sipped a cup of hot tea as he walked around. He had been certain that today would be the hatching, but the day proceeded quietly. Now it was late, nearly eleven in the evening and he had decided to take one last look at the hatching chamber.

He stepped around an egg and the Egg Mother opened her eyes to look at him. "Sorry," he mumbled, "I was just checking to see how things were going."

The dragon looked at Harry, her eyes twirling with streaks of green. She slowly stood and shook herself, then she glanced down at her egg and nudged it with her snout. She took a step back and looked at Harry. "It is time," she replied, then she started to croon softly.

Harry stared at her for a moment in shock, then he noted the other mothers were waking and starting to croon. He chuckled and shook his head, then he pulled out his wand and twirled it while casting his spell.

A bell started ringing across the bowl and the dragons woke instantly, bellowing their own calls, waking a Weyr that had just settled down for the night.

Harry walked over to the entrance to stop the candidates as they entered the chamber. "Cheki, alert the Weyrs to start bringing their guests. Tell them not to waste any time," he sent silently.

"Yes, Harry," replied Chekiath.

Many of the riders stumbled past the candidates, aiming for the stands. Last time they had been on the hatching sands, this time they would be spectators.

Overhead in the bowl, dragons started popping into position, carrying excited parents and dignitaries from Britain and America to witness the third impression. Chekiath reared up on his hind legs and bellowed for order, then he started directing the dragons down one at a time to unload their passengers.

Harry stood in front of the growing crowd of candidates who were all whispering and murmuring to each other. A few showed signs that they had already gone off to bed and hurriedly discarded their night clothes for something more suitable. The excitement among them was at a fever pitch. For the past two weeks they had been working towards this day.

Harry glanced down at his watch, then over towards the mothers who had all moved to one side of the chamber, out of the way. The dragons were starting to line the upper rim of the stands and they were joining in the chorus, crooning to the eggs. Harry grinned at the sight and sound, the noise made by the dragons was literally causing the sands on the hatching floor to vibrate.

He glanced at his watch again. It had been less than fifteen minutes since he had sounded the alarm and the stands were nearly filled. People had been anxiously waiting all day for the dragons to bring them here. He held up a hand and the candidates and guests fell silent. The dragons continued to croon to the eggs, forcing Harry to cast a quick sonorus on himself.

"You've trained for this moment," he said to the candidates. "Even those of you who weren't chosen by an egg mother have trained for this. Spread out and watch the entire floor, not just the egg you had been caring for. We don't know for certain that the egg you cared for will hatch your dragon, so be aware of the other hatchlings and what they are doing. If a dragon comes to you and impresses, move over to Hagrid. He'll be sending you out for first feeding. Remember, a newly hatched dragon is a danger to you and itself. If the hatchling is moving to someone behind you, get out of the way."

Harry waited while the Maziang group listened to a dragon translate, then they nodded at him. He grinned and motioned them forward. As he backed away, he shot Lisa Turpin a thumbs up and nodded to Lobsang.

Harry paused before the stands and waved to grab the attention of everyone in the stands. "Riders and guests, thank you for coming here tonight. I would ask that you do not clap or shout when a rider impresses. The noise might distract a hatchling. We will be video taping the hatching and copies will be made available to each Weyr. We will hold a celebration afterward or tomorrow if it goes on too late," he said.

Harry then climbed the stairs into the stands and moved to a spot saved for him by his riders between May and Hermione.

"Any minute now," he murmured.

"How did you know to come here tonight, Harry? Most of us were going to bed." asked Hermione.

Harry shrugged. "I didn't know. I just thought I would look in on the eggs one last time before I turned in."

Hermione opened her mouth to say something when May interrupted.

"Look!" she said, pointing to an egg in the middle of the sands. The crack was clearly visible and widening as a snout started to push through.

With a final push, the head popped through the hole and unbalanced the egg. The egg toppled over and shattered, spilling a Ukrainian Ironbelly onto the sands. The hatchling stood on wobbly legs and shook off pieces of the shell, then he turned and seemed to aim for a specific person. The little dragon made a beeline for one of the Maziang group.

As soon as the first egg broke, the crooning of all the dragons changed to a soft humming as if they were trying to entice the hatchlings from their eggs.

The little Ironbelly stopped in front of a boy and the pair stared at each other for a moment as if they were shocked by what they saw. The boy dropped to his knees in front of the dragon and the little dragon moved close enough to nudge him with his snout. "Thoo jaychay, thoo jaychay," muttered the boy loudly.

Both Hermione and May started to sniffle at the sight of the boy with his arms wrapped around his dragon. Harry looked at both and sighed, then he pulled his wand and conjured two handkerchiefs and passed one to each girl.

Remus, who was sitting behind them, leaned forward. "He's saying thank you," he whispered. He had taken the time to learn a little of the dialect spoken by the people from Maziang.

Harry nodded. It was a sentiment he could easily understand. He turned to look at Remus. "Note the brown coloring. I think this confirms it."

Remus nodded. "Yes, I also noted the coloring was missing in the non-bonded dragons born since you impressed. It must be related to the impression."

May gasped as six eggs broke open at once. In each case the little hatchling zeroed in on a particular candidate as soon as they were free from the shell.

Harry watched for a moment longer with a slight frown. There were now nearly thirty people on the sands who had impressed. "Dobby," he called. He suddenly realized that they had overlooked something very important.

Dobby appeared with a soft pop. "Harry Potter, sir?" he asked.

"Go to Hagrid and ask if there is anyway you and the other elves can help him. He's got too many weyrlings to deal with by himself. Tell him I'll be there in a bit," Harry said.

"Yes, Harry Potter, sir," replied Dobby who then vanished with a pop.

Harry turned slightly and both girls watched him worriedly. They weren't sure what was bothering him. "Garanoth, Comaloth, Wivaronth," he called silently.

"Weyrleader?" came three startled replies. These were the dragons of the wing seconds.

"Tell your riders to pick three people from their wing to assist Hagrid," he ordered. "There are too many hatchlings for him to handle alone."

Hermione turned to stare at Harry in shock and he gave her an apologetic shrug. "We never really considered that Hagrid would be alone in handling one hundred and twenty six new riders," he mumbled.

She glanced over to see Hagrid trying to bring order to the Weyrlings and having trouble. First hunger was hitting the hatchlings hard and Hagrid couldn't possibly handle everyone by himself. The little dragons where upset about the delay in being fed and in turn their riders were starting to question why things were delayed.

Harry stood and grinned to himself as nine other riders also stood and made their way to the stairs.

Harry walked over to Hagrid, who was looking decidedly harried. He stepped up to his friend and placed a hand on his arm. "Here, let us help," he said softly, then he turned to the new riders and their very hungry dragons. "You five are to come with me," he commanded, pointing to five new riders, then he turned and led them from the hatching chamber.

Following his example, Harry's riders stepped forward and grabbed five Weyrlings each. Outside the chamber, the elves had hastily erected a sectioned off feeding pen. Harry directed each Rider to take his hatchling into an empty section of the pen. As soon as the dragon entered the section, an elf delivered a hobbled sheep to the pen and the little dragon pounced on it.

Harry stood back, his arms folded and watched the whole process, satisfied that the crises had been averted.

Sirius trotted up to him with a huge grin. "Can you use any help?"

He glanced around then he nodded. "Can you conjure some torches? We never anticipated a night hatching. It's bad enough it gets dark early, but people need to see the paths to their Weyrs. I thought we had planned things well enough, but I guess we didn't."

Sirius nodded and started making the torches. When there was a sizable stack of them, an elf appeared and snapped his fingers. The torches vanished from the pile and suddenly the bowl was lit up by torches lining the paths and entrances to the Weyrs. Sirius continued conjuring more torches and the elves came by to pick them up to light up the interior of the bowl.

Harry made five more trips back into the chamber escorting the Weyrlings over the course of four very long hours. He was pleased to see Lisa Turpin had impressed a Horntail. Lobsang had also impressed a Horntail while the two Americans had impressed a Horntail and a Ironbelly.

"Weryleader, Smelly Dog says they need you back inside the chamber," Norendrath said.

Harry look at the remaining Weyrlings and saw they were all feeding their dragons. "Wayne, tell my group where to go, would you? They say they need me inside."

Wayne Hopkins nodded. "Sure thing, Harry."

Tiredly, he trudged back into the chamber. It was now nearly four in the morning. He absently noted the small cluster of people looking unhappy. These were the extras that hadn't been picked. He made a note to speak with them tomorrow.

Up in the stands, people were breaking into clusters to talk about what had happened. More worrisome, he saw Sirius, Remus, Sir Robert and Lord Mills standing around an egg in the back corner of the hatching chamber. Sir Robert was bent over the egg using a stethoscope on it and looking very grim. Spath stood off to one side with another dragon that Harry assumed was the Egg Mother.

He quickly moved to join them. "What's the problem?" he asked.

Sirius turned and nodded grimly to Harry. "Partenth says the egg only quivered slightly then it stilled and never hatched."

Sir Robert climbed to his feet, then he pulled off the stethoscope and wiped at his brow. He saw Harry and his expression grew somber. "I'm sorry, Harry, but I can hear no sounds coming from the egg. I'm afraid the little dragon didn't survive."

"It's gone, Weyrleader. It happens," Partenth said solemnly. "But my other egg lived. Jenth has impressed a good rider. Jenth will thrive and do well."

Harry looked up at the large dragon in surprise. He realized that the dragons didn't consider it a live dragon until it had broken from the shell. He knew how the dragons felt, but this was his first time experiencing it first hand and it bothered him.

"What do we do with the egg?" Remus said softly.

"Partenth?" Harry asked uneasily.

"It's gone, Weyrleader. In days past, we would push it from the nest. The dragon handlers would pick it up for their use."

Harry shivered at the cold tone from Partenth, but he couldn't blame the dragon. The dragons might not regret the loss of a hatchling, but he certainly did.

"Harry, this could be a wonderful opportunity," Sir Robert started to say, then he paused when Harry held up his hand.

"I know what you're going to say, Sir Robert. You want to study it," Harry said unhappily. "I know that you could use it to learn many things that would help the dragons, but..." He stopped and took a shuddering breath. "Fine. Get it out of here and don't study it at Campbeltown. I recognize the need you have, but that doesn't mean I have to like it."

Remus placed a hand on Harry's shoulders sympathetically and he flinched away. "I'm turning in. It's been a long day," he muttered.

With that he turned and walked away from the group, his shoulders hunched as if he carried a heavy burden.

Partenth crooned softly at Harry's retreating back and the other dragons present took up her song.

"He even mourns the unnamed," Spath said solemnly. "Is it any wonder he is our champion?"

"Well damn," muttered Sirius.

"Quite," Sir Robert said in agreement. He was the first to pick up on Spath's comment. It was simple, and very logical in dragon minds. The egg never hatched, so the dragon inside never knew its name. Having no name, it therefore was not a dragon. He heaved a sigh, then he turned to Sirius to get his help removing the egg to a suitable laboratory.

In his weyr, Harry curled up between Chekiath's front paws. The day had been very long and he was exhausted and unhappy over the loss of the baby dragon. His dragon quickly picked up on his mood and crooned softly. "Sleep, my Harry," Chekiath said gently. "Tomorrow we'll meet new friends and family."

"G'nite, Cheki," he mumbled as he slipped into an uneasy sleep.

Word of the hatching spread from Disko to the other Weyrs and the dragons rejoiced, comforted by the fact that there were now one hundred and twenty five new riders. They were also surprised by the Weyrleader mourning the loss of a nameless egg. Every Weyr on Earth had now produced at least one egg for the impressions and they knew this Weyrleader would continue to bring them riders. The impression boosted the spirits of the dragons and confidence in their Weyrleader.

Disko Island Hatching Chamber, November 17th...

Three distinct groups of teens filed into the chamber just after breakfast. Harry stood on the hatching sands, waiting for everyone to get settled. He awoke feeling refreshed and renewed. A dragon might have been lost, but there were new riders to welcome to their fraternity. The new Weyrlings filed into the chamber and stayed on the sands with their dragons, unwilling to be parted from them just yet. Up in the stands, his riders and the small group of fifteen people that hadn't impressed sat.

Harry glanced around and noted that Lisa Turpin kept one hand on her Zinth. He winked at her and turned to face the rest of the Weyrlings. "Riders, if you would join the others in the stands, please? Trust me when I say that your dragons will be safe on the hatching sand and they'll be able to see you just fine," he said, then smiled as some grumbled about leaving their dragons. The newly bonded didn't like separating and for the first week would stay in very close contact with each other. It was part of the process, but Harry also knew they needed to build the concept of some 'alone time' into their bond.

As the new riders moved to the stands and the hatchlings curled up on the warm sand to watch their riders, Harry turned to the others who hadn't impressed.

"You fifteen didn't impress and I regret that almost as much as you do. But you have my solemn promise as Weyrleader that you will continue to be presented to the dragons until you either impress or pass the age of impression. The next impression will not be for a few months, so you will have an option of staying on at Campbeltown Weyr and helping out or you can return to your homes and come back just before the next impression.

"In the meantime, I thank you for your help. Remus and Sirius," he waved towards the pair of men standing by the entrance, "have arranged for your transportation back to Campbeltown, and from there, home if you wish. Please follow them."

"You'll really let us try again?" asked one teen anxiously.

Harry smiled at the boy. "You have my promise as a dragon rider on it."

"Good enough for me," said the boy, then he stood and walked over to where Remus stood. One by one the others joined him and the wizards led the fifteen from the chamber. Harry watched with a tinge of sadness, then he turned back to the much enlarged group of dragon riders.

"Good morning, dragon riders," he said loudly and with a very broad smile.

His riders had been expecting this and they started cheering. Their numbers had more than tripled overnight and to the riders it was like finding lost family. The new riders were shocked for a moment, then they joined in in the celebration.

Harry waited a few minutes, then he held up his hand, waving them to silence.

He nodded to Millicent, who he had asked to take notes of the meeting, then he turned back to the others. "Millicent is taking notes for us. But first I would like to spend a little time talking about the impression."

Harry paused and took a deep breath, then he hooked his thumb in his pocket.

"First off," he began, "what went wrong and what went right. Last night was our third ever impression and it never occurred to us that the dragons might hatch in the middle of the night. We were unprepared for that and it caught us by surprise. This Weyr is not far from the Arctic circle. Daylight hours are very limited and when you consider that we're dealing with November/February hatching times, it should have been obvious."

He paused and gave the riders a challenging look. "Can anyone else tell me what went wrong?"

One of the Maziang riders stood hesitantly and she bowed to Harry then she said something softly. "Bolomarr says it seemed that the food animals weren't ready for us. She also said that the elves organized quickly and efficiently to provide the meal."

Harry nodded gratefully. He had been worried that the new riders would be too intimidated to criticize anything. "That's right. We assumed that one person would be able to handle all of the new hatchlings and lead them out to an area where they could feed. The elves erected a new feeding pen and made sure that each hatching had a timely delivery of an animal. Anything else?"

One of the Americans stood up. "Some of the guests never showed up. My parents were in Condron, but they never made it to Disko," he said.

Harry nodded. "We'd spent the last two weeks working on getting the candidates used to the idea of riding on dragon back, but we expected the guests to do it on the first shot. It's something we have to address and do better at next time."

Harry stood while the riders and Weyrlings tossed out comments for the next twenty minutes, highlighting things that had worked well and things that hadn't. After twenty minutes he smiled and raised a hand. "This was our third impression ever and we're all still learning. There are no experts here and your comments will go a long way to insuring that in February we won't repeat the same mistakes.

"Now, for you new riders, here's the plan. For the next sixty five days you will be trained in how to care for your dragon. The first thirty of those days will be here in Disko Island, then you will leave here and begin a tour of every Weyr in the world. During your stay here, there will be at least one Wing of experienced riders here everyday to help the Weyrling Master in class. You can always ask a rider about any issue concerning your dragon."

He paused and waited for the dragons to translate for the Maziang riders then he continued. "At some point before you leave here, the senior dragon will choose one or more persons to be the Weyrleader for your Weyr. These people will be in charge of the day to day operation of their Weyrs and make the bulk of the decisions regarding how the Weyr is run. However, policy regarding nations and governments is not something you will deal with. That will remain under my control alone."

"You? Why you?" asked girl from the American group. She stood and looked down at Harry who was at least a year or more younger than her and several inches shorter than she was.

Harry frowned and glared the girl who was questioning his authority. Suddenly, all of the hatchlings bellowed and one turned to stare at her rider.

"He is The Weyrleader. Without him, we would not be here," she said sternly. "The Weyrleader can speak to every dragon and every dragon obeys him."

The girl paled and looked horrified by the stern rebuke from her own dragon. "I'm sorry," she murmured, then she quickly sat back down.

The sunlight streaming in from the entrance to the Hatching chamber was suddenly blocked as Chekiath moved into the chamber. His huge size dwarfed the hatchlings. It drove home a very obvious point. Of all of the impressed dragons, his was the largest and the most mature dragon. It was also clear that the hatchlings deferred to Chekiath, moving to make room for the large dragon.

Harry watched the girl for a moment, then he smiled slightly, trying to soften the moment. "I alone am responsible for every dragon on the planet. Those who are chosen as Weyrleader for your Weyr will act with my authority for all your local matters. The only time I will get involved is when it becomes an issue that affects dragons as a nation. And make no mistake. You are now part of a nation of dragon riders, unique and partially independent from your home country.

"We have fought, bled and died for the right of dragons to be recognized as a people. Perhaps a people that need humans, but a people nonetheless. The person to your left and to your right right is your brother or sister. Even if you don't speak the same language, we all share a common bond because of our dragons. Make it a point in the next sixty five days to get to know each other, both from your weyr and from the others."

He glanced up at Chekiath, who was looking at the riders.

His dragon looked down at him. "We're ready when you are, Harry," he said.

Harry smiled. "It was our plan to hold a celebration feast in the Gringotts chamber after your impression. Because the impression started so late, that wasn't possible. Our guests from last night will be returning in an hour and we'll hold the feast then. Take the opportunity to spend some time with your parents and our guests. Introduce them to your dragon, relax and enjoy the day. Tomorrow breakfast will be from seven to eight in the morning, then classes will begin in this chamber. Do not be late. Dismissed."

Harry stepped back and glanced up at Cheki. "That went better than I thought," he said softly.

"I think you will always find at least one person who will want to know why you are Weyrleader."

He shrugged. "I suppose. Let's just hope we don't end up with someone unwilling to accept it."

The Wand and the Dagger, Knockturn Alley, November 20th...

Tobias Bunniford grunted heavily and watched the girl with satisfaction. She was well worth the extra ten galleons for her talents.

Anna slowly looked up and leaned back, gazing at her current client. She knew she had pleased him and expected a nice tip.

"Was that good enough for you, Tobby?" she asked.

He grinned at her. "Anna, whenever you want to come away from all this, I'd be happy to offer you a mistress contract. My wife never need know about it."

"Tobby," she chided, "when will you learn I like where I am? I have people that appreciate my abilities and I'm in high demand. But if the rumors are true, I would see you're soon going to be my most special client."

Tobias frowned. "Rumors? What rumors?"

She leaned forward and gently fondled his flaccid member. "Word in the alley is that you're organizing a group to take back our world. I even heard that news of your group has reached very important people on the continent."

Bunniford frowned and for a moment tried to ignore what Anna was doing. But she was too experienced and too adept in casting wandless sex spells. It was what made her among the most sought after courtesans on the alley.

"I know one man that was asking for you today," Anna murmured, then she bent down slightly and ran the tip of her tongue over him. He never realized she was casting a compulsion charm on him. Sex related magic was not her only specialty.

"I'd like to meet him... later," Tobias announced, then he reached down to guide her head.

Anna crowed to herself. Arranging this meeting would net her one thousand galleons, quite a handy sum and much better than the paltry sixty galleons she earn servicing this client.

Buckingham Palace, November 21st...

"Your Majesty, the Prime Minister and Lord Mills are here to see you," a man said.

The Queen looked up from her desk and put aside the document she was reading. "Send them in," she replied.

The man opened the door and motioned to the two gentlemen.

John Major entered, followed by an obviously nervous Lord Mills. For almost a year, ever since he'd caught Harry buying his sheep on that cold December night, his life had been turned upside down. Now he was involved in one of the most important projects the country had ever participated in and his only wish was that his wife had lived to see it.

"Gentlemen, do come in and sit, please," the Queen said, then she turned to Lord Mills. She had been reading a dossier that her people had put together on the man before he arrived. He was a minor lord and a minor member of parliament before getting involved with the dragons. Locally very popular with his people and very concerned about their problems. In short, he was the kind of politician that she liked to see. One who was genuinely concerned about his people. He had a wife who had passed away several years back from cervical cancer, one son who was attending university and no known vices other than the occasional drink.

She smiled, trying to put Mills at ease. "Lord Mills, we understand you recently returned from the Hatching Weyr in Greenland. How did things go?"

James smiled. "It went very well, Your Majesty. We now have forty five new riders to our Weyr. We had a team of three people, plus one roving cameraman, filming the impression. Thanks to the Prime Minister's public relations office, we've edited the impression down to a single one hour tape for you to look at," he replied, then he opened his briefcase and extracted a tape, which he placed on the coffee table.

The Queen nodded with a slight smile. She would enjoy watching it, as the process intrigued her. Someday she hoped she would be able to witness an impression first hand. She had been deeply moved when she witnessed the bond in action, mourning the loss of one of their own dragons. It was that point that drove home just how different and unique the dragon bond was.

"How did our Weyrleader handle it? Did everything go off smoothly?" she asked.

James shook his head and chuckled. "Like every other new venture, there were mistakes and errors. Surprisingly, the Weyrleader quickly identified some of the biggest problems and took steps to correct them in a very timely manner," he said, then he paused for a second. "When I consider the Harry that I first met in a wintery field in Scotland, to the Harry of only a few days ago, I am amazed by how far he's come in such a short amount of time.

"He identified the problems and immediately took steps to fix them. And like a good leader, he pitched in right along with his people, rather than just ordering others about."

The Queen nodded to herself. "We are pleased to know he's doing well. We have read the reports from his tutor, Mr. Franklin, as well as his personal opinions about the Weyrleader. It is to our great shame that he holds so little allegiance to our country, but we have only ourselves to blame for failing him."

The Queen straightened in her chair. "There is no sense mourning over lost opportunities. We must push forward and the one way we feel to accomplish that would be to consider going public with the dragons come the new year."

Major and Mills exchanged a glance of concern between them.

"Going public, Ma'am?" asked John Major in alarm. They had considered the idea and were actively pursuing some options, but the Queen sounded like she was ready to invite the TV crews in.

The Queen smiled thinly. "Oh, do not worry so, Sir John, We're not suggesting that we simply throw open the gates of the Weyr to Skynews. No, we feel it can be done in phases. Sir Robert has alerted me to the desire of the Weyrleader to first confront certain Ambassadors so that they can alert their own governments. We think the idea has merit and would like to see select members of our government also let in on the secret. Properly managed, we could be looking a full disclosure sometime in the summer or surely by the next new year."

"The Weyrleader has asked several of the riders to help put together a video, introducing the concept of dragons to people. He hopes it would ease the initial shock of meeting a dragon for the first time. Ambassador Poulsen has turned out to be a big help with his government, but the man fainted when he met Chekiath," Lord Mills said softly.

John Major nodded. "Yes, Sir Robert routed a request to make use of my public affairs office for video editing. In fact, we used the impression to stress the secrecy agreements on our employees and then had them edit the impression recordings. We'll be ready for any tapes the Weyr produces."

The Queen nodded and turned a stern gaze on her Prime Minister. "Sir John, we are not unaware of how important this coming year is to you and your party. We would ask that you share with your opposition leadership, or at least brief them, so that they can continue your efforts should the elections go against you."

Sir John blinked and nodded. He realized there was a very carefully phrased request in the Queen's statement that he did not defer the projects created by the dragons in favor of his campaign. "I will personally brief the Labor leadership, Ma'am."

The Queen and the Prime Minister stared at each other for a moment longer, then she nodded, satisfied that the message was understood. The dragons represented a boon to the country that superseded party politics.

Office of the Deputy Minister, Ministry of Magic, November 22nd...

"Are you all set for your meeting tomorrow, Albus?" asked Sir William.

Albus Dumbledore looked up from the printout he was reading. He had recently learned he could print out his emails rather than read them on the screen, so he had started doing so, making use of the larger font available.

"The ICW meeting tomorrow will be our first chance to address the issues raised by our takeover. Most of the people there know me, or know my reputation. I should be able to sway at least some of the more moderate Ministries to resume normal relations," Albus replied.

"What do you think about taking Potter with you?" asked Croaker.

Dumbledore blinked and looked intrigued for a moment. "To present evidence for dragon intelligence?"

Croaker nodded. "And to introduce him," he added.

Harry was a mage class wizard, one of the few in Britain, and as such it was tradition to introduce him to the ICW delegations shortly after his sixteenth birthday. Bringing him there early for the dragon issue would allow them to also address his introduction. Both men felt that if he were asked to go just for the purpose of introducing him to the ICW, he would refuse.

While a source of pride to the nation, the introduction of a new mage wasn't really a big deal. Albus realized that he could slip it in offhandedly at a meeting without upsetting Harry, who would concentrate on the dragon issue.

The dragons were another issue that had to be dealt with at the international level. The British wizarding publications had been filled with articles on dragons and Harry's trip to Diagon Alley and Hogwarts had been front page news with massive photo coverage. Unfortunately, some of the continental press had ignored the news coming from Britain, claiming it to be fabricated.

Albus leaned back in his chair. "I don't know. Perhaps the next meeting, after some of the other nations learn we're ready to start exporting certain dragon products again. Harry wouldn't have any time to prepare for tomorrow's meeting."

Croaker nodded. He knew about the agreement between Nelson Ollivander and the Weyr. Ollivander's nephew was already supplying dragon scale wand cores to a dozen wand makers in the British Isles and he expected to start supplying them to the United States and Canada by the month's end. In addition, Gringotts had begun shipments of dung and ground dragon teeth powder, which was a key ingredient in cardiac restorative potions.

"It's a good idea, Albus," Sir William offered. "But I agree one day isn't enough time. He's still at Disko, isn't he?"

Albus nodded. "Yes, they have their hands full training up the new riders and Harry's been quite busy with that."

"Then send him a message asking to talk to him about joining you at the next meeting of the ICW," Sir William offered.

Albus nodded, then he turned back to his computer. Leaning closer to the machine, he peered at the screen, then looked at his keyboard as he began to type.

Sir William chucked and jotted off a quick note to the fledgling IT department to send someone over to set Albus' machine to use a bigger font.

---

Author's Notes and Mockeries:

- First off, to all those that left unsigned reviews, thank you, we greatly enjoyed deleting them.

- A number of readers commented on the two missing dementors, expressing concern, but no one thought of the most likely issue concerning them. No where in canon does it say that Dementors are solely found in the UK. Dementors are a bigger issue than anyone realizes. Most countries in the world have some variation of the species.

- We had several people chide us about using "five thousand million" and told us a Brit picker would have told us not to use that. And then there were an equal number of people that have in the past complained that no respectable Brit would use "Billion". So just to set the record straight. I'm not British, Scottish, Welsh or any other UK nationality. I don't use a Brit picker because I have seen authors that have used one, then get raked over the coals because now instead of complaining about Brit picking they are going to Scot pick, or Irish pick or buttcrack pick. Damned if you don't, damned if you do. Since you're going to complain, not using one means stuff gets to you faster. There. Complain about that.

- It should be pointed out that Sidraneth, the Queen that came to Earth was from just prior to Forth Pass in the Pern storyline, or roughly more than 1000 years after the humans colonized the planet. A lot of the Pern books occurred in Ninth Pass, nearly three thousand years after colonization. So anything that was discovered in a book like "All the Weyrs of Pern" was unknown in Sidraneth's time and needs to be rediscovered.

- The Earl of Rosshire wants to know how closely things will follow real life events. We made a few tweaks here and there, but the Blair win of 1997 will remain unchanged. In fact we will see Tony early in 1996 as he lends a hand to the crown in informing his party about dragons and what benefit they offer.

- A number of people have come forward suggesting possible things the dragons can do. Well we're way ahead of every one here and don't be surprised if at some point you see something along the lines of what you suggested. That doesn't mean that we took your suggestion. All it means is that we're smarter than you and thought of it first!

- A suggestion came for chapter summaries. Now I don't know about you folks, but generally speaking when I get a notice of a story I really like has been updated, I rush over and reread the last chapter before reading the new one. Summaries in written works? Nope, that's a thing for TV. If you can't remember something you have an amazing button that allows you to see the other chapters. Wow.

And finally our recommendation for this chapter is an oldie but goodie.

Title: Insidious Inquisitor
Author: Yunaine
StoryID: 4390267

This is a fun little what if romp that leaves you wishing the author had fleshed it out into a multichapter tale. Have a read and if you like it, drop them a review to help boost the story up in the list.

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