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

6. Chapter 6

Standard Disclaimer:

Bob stumbled onto the stage and stared in bewilderment at the stacks of boxes. "What the devil?"

"No no! Go to commercial!" Alyx shouted, then she waved at Bob from her control booth.

Bob saw her waving and yelled. "What the hell are you doing? This is supposed to be the disclaimer!"

Alyx flipped a switch so she could be heard. "We're trying to save Slobnovia from financial ruin remember? So now we have to market all the merchandise we had made. I've hijacked the Christian Broadcasting Network's satellite to bring people the Home Who Who network! Now pick up a shirt and hold it out to the camera and when I point to you, tell people about the shirt. And why they need to buy one!"

Bob wiped at his face tiredly. All he wanted was to go back to a normal disclaimer, torturing Snape and dancing technicolor penguins! But no! His wife had to go Who Who crazy!

Reluctantly he picked up a t-shirt and looked at it. On the front was a penis wearing a sombrero. Someone had painted a smiley face on the appendage. A hand showed a thumbs up. Under the image was a slogan of "Don't rub me the wrong way!", on the back was another slogan, "Who who's for world peace!"

Suddenly a camera lit up and Alyx gestured. Bob blinked and he hesitantly held up the shirt. "This quality T-Shirt can be yours today. Be the first on your block to proudly wear a who who on your chest!"

Bob frowned, behind him a chorus line of technicolor penguins danced across the stage, dragging a screaming Snape to his doom.

"Oh for the love..." Bob said, then he threw the shirt down and glared up at control booth. This was going too far! "All I want is a disclaimer telling people we don't own Harry Potter or the Dragonriders of Pern and you're running around drawing smiley faces on penises, then selling them to Christians!"

Alyx smiled and held up a huge bag of money.

Bob blinked. "Really?"

"Maybe we can replace that three legged Llama after all," he muttered, then he picked up the shirt again. "People will buy anything."

He smiled at the camera. "God wants you to share your who who with the world!"

Alyx snickered in the control booth and murmured, "It's amazing what a bag of shredded newspapers can make someone do."

---

- It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so.
Mark Twain

Chinese Embassy London, November 25th...

The door to the nondescript office opened and Colonel Jin Tan Mu looked up from the papers he was examining.

"Ah, do come in, comrade Captain," he said, then he reached for a cigarette. "You have news for me?"

Wei Fong nodded nervously and handed over a sheet of paper, then he turned towards a large map. "We have heard from two of your teams, Comrade Colonel. The team dispatched to HMNB Clyde is reporting increased activity lately, and they report the imperialists are again employing anti-satellite counter measures, a practice which they had stopped nearly two years ago."

"Yes, I have been informed that our old friends, the Russians, have also recently developed an interest in this area. Perhaps they search for the same thing we do?" replied the Colonel. The imperials were especially effective in their anti-satellite countermeasures, he thought sourly.

"Perhaps, comrade Colonel, but I suspect what you seek isn't in HMNB Clyde," replied the station chief.

The Colonel turned a hard glare on the man. "Explain," he said softly.

Wei Fong knew he was on dangerous ground, but he plunged ahead anyway. "HMNB Clyde is a navy base shared by both the British and sometimes the Americans. It is an active naval facility and sees a lot of activity. But I have to ask myself, our man was part of a team that consisted of a Physicist, a Biologist and an Astronomer. What purpose would these professions have at a Navy base that has never been known as a major source of this type of research activity before?"

The Colonel stared up at the map plastered against the wall. Next to it were several photographs of the HMNB Clyde facility and other places. He inhaled deeply on his cigarette, thinking. Finally he said, "You do make a compelling argument, Comrade Captain. And this second location? Further north up the western coast?"

"MoD Machrihanish is a former Royal Air Force facility that has been mostly decommissioned. From the report of your team they have been unable to spot any significant air traffic around the facility. They do have some interesting discrepancies to note however," Wei Fong replied, he glanced up and the Colonel motioned for him to continue.

"Yes, well, there is a military security force now in place, the first significant military force in several years. At this point, your people think it's a small force. It may be that the imperialists are getting ready to reactivate the facility.

"Additionally, it appears that part of the facility has been sold, perhaps to one of the industrial conglomerates."

The Colonel looked up with interest. "What?"

The concept of selling part or all of a military base caught the Colonel by surprise. The People's Republic would never resort to such a low measure as to consort with the capitalist dogs that were infiltrating his country. And when the government did deal with such, it was always to the advantage of the party.

Wei Fong nodded. "Part of the facility is undergoing construction. As part of that effort, new fencing has been put into place that performed two functions. First, it pushed into the old base, absorbing a large piece of land and some buildings. Secondly, it blocks the view of the base. Listening to some of the work crews, they do not know who is paying for the construction, but they do know they are laying the ground work for some sort of power research facility. They believe that either one of the industrial conglomerates or the government is building a research station to explore new methods of power generation.

"Given that the imperialist government is known for exploring alternate sources of power generation, they may be planning on putting up an experimental wind farm. The location close to the coast makes it ideal for such an endeavor and there is ample land outside of the base to install wind turbines," Wei Fong said in conclusion.

The Colonel examined the report again in silence, then he snuffed out his smoke and glanced up at the map. "And what do your instincts tell you about this place?" he asked, partly out of curiosity.

Wei Fong looked at the map then he looked at the Colonel. "I think, Comrade Colonel," he said slowly, "that this place bears more scrutiny. Right now there is little to say for or against it being the location we seek. I would label this as a point of interest that we should come back to."

The Colonel nodded slowly, his opinion matched that of the comrade Captain, not that he'd admit it to the man. "Very well. Inform our team to move onto the next area of interest. We will come back tothis place for a closer look if we fail to find what we seek."

"Yes, Comrade Colonel. I'll inform your team to move north to Ormsary," replied Wei Fong.

The Colonel nodded and waved the man away. He turned to the list and examined the entry for Ormsary. It supposedly contained an agricultural research station run by the imperialists, but they knew they also had some equipment that wasn't ordinarily used for agriculture.

Administration Tent, Disko Island Hatching Weyr, November 28th...

Harry stood by an enchanted window gazing out across the bowl as everyone filed into the room. When he heard the door close he turned and nodded a greeting to everyone. The room was fairly full today. His Wing Leaders were present, as well as Lord Mills, Master Jangbu, Jasper Brady and Remus, who was sitting off to one side watching a dicta-quill record the meeting for his history record.

The wing seconds, Ronan, Michelle and Hermione, took seats along the wall.

He waited for a moment for everyone to get settled, then he stepped up to the head of the large conference table. "The dragons have decided and I have agreed to support their decision," he said quietly. "In a moment I'll summon in our new Weyrleaders and we'll explain what's happened."

Draco leaned forward eagerly, "Did they go the way you thought?"

Harry nodded. "Yes, I am rather pleased with the decisions. From what I understand it was an easy one to make. Let's just hope the dragons never find themselves unable to pick."

An murmur of agreement rippled through the room and Harry's eyes glazed over for a moment as he summoned the required people. When he finished that, he turned to Hermione. "Can you prepare some blank organization charts based around our Weyr? The new leaders will need to assemble their own wings and organization; I think some blank charts might help."

She glanced up in surprise and nodded.

The door opened and in filed Lobsang from Maziang, followed by Katherine Matthews and Frank Taylor.

The trio looked at everyone sitting around and exchanged worried looks amongst themselves. Harry stepped around the table and moved to join the three newcomers. "After much consideration, the senior dragons have settled on you three as Weyrleader for your Weyr."

Lobsang's brow furrowed, but before he could speak one of the others broke in. "What? There are two of us here, Weyrleader. How is that supposed to work?"

Harry smiled and motioned for the three to sit. "All right, let's start with Condron Weyr," he said, then he looked pointedly at the Frank and Kat. "Ralaninth has considered all of the riders from your group. I even gave him permission to look over the people in the British group. What he had to say was simple. He asked that both of you share the position."

"He did? Why?" asked Kat Matthews.

"This isn't meant as an insult, but he said that you and Frank would make an excellent team because you each would cancel out the one flaw in the other," Jasper added.

Frank glanced over to the man. "Flaw?" he repeated with a touch of anger.

Harry placed a hand on Frank's shoulder. "Ralaninth believes that you tend to be impulsive, whereas Kat tends to spend too much time considering options before making a decision. He feels that combined you would make a powerful force of leadership for the Weyr. Ralaninth also feels that you can work together easily. He says and I'll quote, 'together they will act as a Weyrleader should'."

Frank looked down at the table top and muttered something, then he looked up. "Yeah, I'd say Ralaninth has me pegged to rights. My choices haven't always been good ones."

He looked over towards Katherine and she nodded in agreement. "I spent a full week considering the offer to come to the Weyr when they approached me. I had planned on being a Charms mistress, but the allure of Weyr was very strong."

"I'm glad you did, Kat," Lokith, her dragon, declared. "I never would have met you otherwise."

Several in the room chuckled and she blushed deeply, then she looked towards one wall. "I'm glad I did too, sweetheart."

"Can you two work together then? I'm not going to tell you how to arrange it, but I will say that I don't want you coming to me to break a deadlock unless you feel that your co-leader's decision will endanger the Weyr," Harry said.

Frank shrugged with an appraising look towards Kat. "I'm willing to give it a try. We haven't mixed much with the wizards in our group. Maybe it's that changed."

Kat nodded and gave Frank a weak smile. The group had been expecting one person to be chosen. Two was a surprise. She never dreamed she'd be tapped, or that she'd be asked to work with Skip. The teen was an imposing figure, very athletic and buff, but also loud and a bit brash in her opinion. Now they would be sharing the most important job in the Weyr.

Harry straightened and grinned at the pair. "Excellent," he declared, then he turned to Lobsang and placed a hand on his shoulder. "My friend, Nokrenth has asked for you to accept the position."

The boy nodded nervously. "You honor me, Weyrleader. I am not sure that I am best suited for such an exalted position."

Harry snorted with laughter, then he shook his head. "I'm sorry, Lobsang. I mean you no insult. The position of Weyrleader is filled with responsibility and worry. If there are any special privileges to the job, I have yet to discover them. Ever since the first day we met months ago I knew you were special. You had a reverence for dragons that I didn't discover until after I impressed.

"I know in my heart that you will be the very best Weyrleader for your riders and you'll turn Maziang into a Weyr to be proud of," Harry said, then he turned to the two Americans. "I want each of you to understand that you can always come to me if you need advice on something. I don't know you as well as I'd like and I hope to fix that in the coming months. I do know this, the dragons chose you. And that is good enough for me."

Harry walked back to the head of the table and sat down, then he opened up his little notebook and made a mark. He waited while all three new Weyrleaders dealt with congratulations from the dragons and the riders.

He glanced up and grinned. "Speaking of responsibilities. Hermione will be providing you with blank organization charts based on the structure we have at Campbeltown. You do not have to follow it to the letter, but I want you to flesh out your basic wing structures no later than December tenth.

"We will be issuing your complete kit, including bows and ammunition bandoliers on the tenth. No rider shall be unarmed until we have resolved our issues with the wizarding world. Kat? Lobsang? I'll ask Remus to speak to both of you to arrange a basic class in enchanting the bolts we use. Most of our ammunition load is non-lethal and I want to keep it that way.

"Maziang will come to Campbeltown after they return home so that they may be instructed in proper handling of the weapons. I'll expect Condron to seek advice and training from your American security detachment," Harry said, then he looked up at Jasper, who nodded. He'd make sure they'd get those classes.

"Until you are trained fully in using the weapons, you'll keep the ammunition bandoliers locked up. I want your wings to get accustomed to wearing the bows for now though." Harry said, then he paused and waited for the translation.

When Lobsang nodded, he continued, "The riders will depart from Disko Island on the seventeenth to begin their Weyr tour, first stop will be Campbeltown. Ronan, Hagrid is asking for ten of our riders to accompany them, so circulate a sign up sheet asking for volunteers. Make sure Lee doesn't sign up for every day. He really needs his math classes."

Ronan nodded and chuckled, then made a note on a pad he balanced on his knee.

Harry glanced down again, then he looked up. "Campbeltown currently has three wings of ten riders each, but the non-bonded dragons are grouped in wings of twenty. I am considering increasing wing sizes to twenty. That would mean that Condron and Maziang would have two wings to start, while Campbeltown would have three full wings and one that's two people short. Wingleaders? Seconds? Comments?"

"It's a good idea, Harry," Draco said after a moment. "If we kept the ten man wings, we'd be drowning in wings."

"That may still happen. I can easily see a time when we're grouping wings into divisions," Ronan offered with a grimace. "On the other hand, it means more work for the seconds."

"That was bound to happen anyway," Harry replied. "With more people coming on board we'll be able to accomplish more. Sir Robert has been sitting around thinking of things dragons could do and that list is growing daily. Hot Rocks are only the tip of the iceberg and we're going to need the people to handle everything."

Frank groaned and placed his head into his hands. "Ouch!" he muttered. Kat chuckled and he looked up. "So we don't get private hot tubs and cable TV?"

Harry laughed. "No, but you do get to ride herd on a bunch of teenage riders, deal with fifty tons of dragon dung a month, and deliver several hundred dragon scales every month to your nation's wand makers. And someday soon we'll be making Hot Rocks by the tons."

Frank grimaced and sunk lower in his seat.

Ronan chuckled, "You have it easy. Condron only has half the dragons we do. We have nearly one hundred tons of dung a month."

Harry laughed and made a note in his book, then he looked up again. "Lobsang, Frank and Kat, I'd like you to schedule your riders for a meeting tonight so that you can inform them of the leadership. And with that, I'm done for this meeting. Does anyone have anything to add?"

"Weyrleader," Lobsang said hesitantly.

Harry held up a hand. "Lobsang, please. I hope we can be friends. Call me Harry. The same goes for you Frank, Kat."

Lobsang looked surprised, then he blushed slightly and nodded. "Harry, we can always come back to you if we need help?"

Harry nodded. "Yes. In fact, I expect that we'll be meeting once a month for many years to come," Harry said softly. "Soon, perhaps as early as next year, the world will know of us. We need to plan for that. We need to protect our dragons and the thousands of dragons that have no riders to shield them from mankind. Make no mistake, some people will love us, and some will hate everything we represent. That's why we fly patrols over our Weyrs and carry weapons. It will only be through hard work on our part that we'll be able to convince the rest of the world to accept us. But we'll never convince everyone."

As Harry spoke Chekiath passed a vision of Harry's ideas to everyone in the room. The vision of a public Weyr that openly flew in the skies of it's parent nation generated awe in each of them. Harry wanted to return to places like Happy Smiles Daycare in Leicester so the children could meet a dragon up close. It was this image more than any other that created determination in the others.

The Wand and the Dagger, Knockturn Alley, November 29th...

Tobias Bunniford slipped into the small room and closed the door behind him. Anna had sent him a note saying that the gentleman that wanted to meet with him was back.

"You are very prompt, Senor," said a voice.

Bunniford whirled around and groped for his wand. Across the room sat a man at a small round table. He casually smoked a cigarette and watched Bunniford with veiled contempt. "Senor, let us put aside the histrionics. If I had wanted you dead, you would be dead. Now come, sit and let us talk as men and perhaps, friends, no?"

"Who are you?" stammered Bunniford. The man was seriously rattled by this encounter.

"I am a man with much to offer your little band, Senor," the man said smugly. He was a representative of a foreign ministry and one of their chief hit wizards who had a side hobby in studying muggle villains and modeling his life after them. "Some call me Carlos, Carlos the Gerbil. You may call me Senor Carlos."

Like many wizards, Carlos' information sources on muggle life was somewhat skewered. He wanted an alias that would strike fear in the hearts of men. And while Carlos the Gerbil might have chosen a better name for himself, he was supremely competent and adept in the fine art of revolution and death.

Bunniford nodded and moved to take a seat across from Carlos the Gerbil. He knew of the name, it was spoken of only in whispers and dark corners. Some said that a muggle terrorist had copied his name, others said he killed his own parents and fed them to his familiar. Still others claimed he killed a dangerous muggle terrorist and took his name.

All Bunniford knew was he was seriously outclassed by this enigmatic man with the strange name.

The two men stared at each other for a long minute of silence, then Bunniford dropped his eyes. "You asked to meet with me, sir?"

"I did," replied Carlos. "I have become aware that you lead a small band of people unhappy with the way the Muggles have run roughshod over your ministry. I'm even aware of the minor acts of civil disobedience you have indulged yourselves in. Really, Senor Bunniford, do you think that casting a few confundus charms or sending a handful of ink bombs to sabotage the newspaper will affect the new ministry in anyway?"

Bunniford bristled slightly. "My men are all good lads, but none of them are really fighters. We haven't been trained for this sort of thing and we're certainly not Death Eaters," he replied hotly.

Carlos the Gerbil smiled thinly. This was the first real honest reaction he had gotten from Bunniford that he felt good about. "Senor, I understand your difficulties. I and my associates are interested in helping you. You fight for a noble cause and we know our help can aid you in stiffening the backs of your followers."

"Help? How?"

Carlos took another drag on his cigarette then he stubbed it out. "We can put you in touch with some people who are more suited to physical action and we can help with money, potions, perhaps even some training in how to fight these muggles that usurped your country. Mark my words, Senor, what is happening here threatens to happen elsewhere. Unless we combat it, all wizard kind stands to lose."

Bunniford nodded. This was exactly what he had been telling his people. They needed to fight. He smiled at the man. "We would be grateful for your support and advice, Carlos," he said.

Carlos nodded, then he reached under the table and picked up a small bag which he slid across the table. "Inside you will find money and several books on how to enhance your casting for greater effect. We also have provided you with a list of suggested targets and actions you could take against them. More support like this will be forthcoming once you have proven you're willing to commit to our cause."

Bunniford pulled the small bag closer to him with reverence. "Thank you, Carlos. I had feared we were alone in this fight."

"No, you are not alone. You are the tip of the spear perhaps, but there are a great many of us that stand behind you, waiting for you to strike," Carlos said.

Bunniford nodded and stood. "I will talk to my people and we'll pick a target. We'll show we're worthy of your support. You know you can always reach me through Anna? She has access to my private floo connection."

Carlos nodded. "Excellent. I look forward to hearing about your successes, my friend."

Bunniford walked from the room and Carlos leaned back in his chair and lit another smoke. These English, he thought, simple minded and easily led. He'll stir up enough problems here that the new muggle run ministry won't bother getting involved with issues abroad.

The door slipped open and Anna stepped into the room. He owed her some money, but first he intended to sample her wares before he paid her.

Hatching Chamber, Disko Island Hatching Weyr, December 1st...

Harry stood in front of the stands and waited while the riders filed into the large cavern. As usual, the riders headed for the stands while the dragons curled up on the sands watching their riders and the Weyrleader.

When they were all assembled, he stepped forward and pulled out a wand that had been painted white. "You'll note this group contains only the wizards. Hagrid is off with the others, giving them extra training in passing jump imagery while we do something different today."

He paused and Chekiath walked into the chamber and came to a stop just behind Harry, he craned his long neck such that his head was just over Harry's shoulder. Harry held up the wand so that all could see it. "Each of you received one of these wands when you came to your Weyr. If you had a wand containing a dragon heartstring, you were told to get rid of it, either by sending it home to your parents or by destroying it. The wands you were given were created by using a dragon scale that had fallen from a growing hatchling, painlessly removed with no harm done to the dragon."

He nodded to the entrance and Sirius joined him. He held in his hand a large, plate sized scale taken from a nearly mature antipodean opaleye dragon. He raised the scale in his hand and said "Lumos," in a clear voice. The scale burst into a blinding light and most of the riders gasped in surprise.

Harry nodded to Sirius who canceled his spell, then he turned back to the riders. "Dragons are inherently magical. The wand you were given is a temporary wand. Later today you will be given a lesson in wand crafting by Albus Dumbledore, who has kindly agreed to teach you how to craft your own wands, using a scale that will come from your own dragon. You will find there will be no better wand for you. It will be as perfect a match as possible thanks to your bond with your dragon."

"Before we get to the issue of wand crafting, I want to touch on magic and your dragon. Generally speaking, a dragon is resistant to magic. Your dragons will resist a spell cast on them by anyone, except you and even then there are limitations to what you can cast. Allow me to demonstrate."

Harry placed a hand against Chekiath's head. "Expecto Patronum!" he said loudly.

Chekiath's eyes twirled with pleasure and the immense dragon burst into blinding light that seemed to pulsate.

Harry released the spell and turned back to the stunned riders.

"I like it when you do that," Chekiath announced.

Harry grinned. "I know you do mate," he replied fondly, then he looked at the riders. "Using the memory of impressing Chekiath, I cast a spell that if I used a wand would have resulted in a corporeal patronus. His scales diffused the magic, spreading it out evenly across his entire body. Because he is not a wand with a definite tip, he could not be used to push out a corporeal patronus, but he still illuminated with the same impact that a corporeal patronus has."

Harry took a step forward and looked at the riders. "I can cast on most dragons with little problem. You will discover you can cast on any dragon besides your own only if you have permission from the dragon or from the dragon's rider."

"And that leads me to a very important distinction. You have all seen how a dragon can control their weight. The dragons have a similar impact on magic, only in reverse. A dragon will allow magic to affect it, but if that magic causes any amount of pain or discomfort, the dragon's inherent resistance will kick in, making the magic ineffective. This is why we have difficultly using magic to heal some forms of injuries. Setting a bone for example is very painful and no amount of pain potion will make it all go away. Even though your dragon knows that setting the bone is necessary and you aren't deliberately trying to hurt him, he will fight against the magic forcing the bones back into position."

Harry looked up at the group of riders until he spotted the two he wanted. "Lobsang, and Kat Matthews, come on down here," he called. Then he sent a silent request to Lokith and Jekrith to join their riders. The two hatchlings stood and walked over to stand next to Chekiath. Harry took one quick look and nearly burst out in laughter. Both hatchlings were tiny, barely the size of a horse, and Chekiath towered over them.

"I can't believe you were once that small," Harry said softly to his dragon.

Chekiath turned his head, his eyes twirling in amusement. "I was, but I had to grow up big. The Weyrleader's dragon needs to be big. Lokith and Jekrith will be big dragons too, one day."

Harry walked the pair through casting a lumos on their dragons and watched the riders. He could tell that all of them were planning on trying that just as soon as he released them.

"Spells that you can safely use on your dragon tend to be area effect spells, like warming or lighting. In the case of an injury, you can put a dragon to sleep, but any sufficient pain will be enough for the dragon to overcome the spell. If you're interested in learning what spells we've discovered that you can cast on your dragon, speak with Luna. I know she has a list of them."

He glanced over at the entrance and saw Albus standing, waiting for his cue. "We'll take a ten minute break while the elves set up some tables and chairs and bring in the wand making materials, then Albus Dumbledore will introduce you to wand crafting."

He stepped back and nodded to Albus. All around him elves started popping in bring in what was needed for the class while the riders stood and stretched. They still had a lot of ground to cover, but they were shaping up to be a fine group of riders.

Harry's Office, Campbeltown Weyr, December 5th...

"You picked up on the right points about that tape, Harry," Mr Franklin said. "But what did you note about the lead United Nations negotiator at Panmunjom?"

Harry leaned back in his chair and thought about it. His lessons with Lewis Franklin were unlike any sort of class he had ever had. The man arrived, usually armed with a video tape of an reenactment of some key point in history which they would watch together, then he would question Harry about what he had seen. It was different and an enjoyable way to learn.

"Patience," Harry said after a minute. "Assuming the reenactment is accurate, and you claim they all are, then the man had incredible patience. They held talks off and on for three years and it was clear that the lead UN negotiator wanted to pull his hair out at times."

"What does that suggest to you?" asked Lewis. He was pleased with the Weyrleader. At first, he wasn't happy with this particular royal request. He was used to teaching much older students who had already graduated from university. Harry was a child in his opinion, but he quickly understood that he was a child that had access to immense power.

"I suppose the first thing I've noted in most of these tapes is to try not to let your emotions show through. That doesn't mean you can't slip now and then, but generally never let your opponent across the table know you're rattled by his position or his comments."

"Very good, Harry," Lewis said. "Can you think of any time when you let your emotions show and you regretted it?"

"Chapman," Harry murmured.

"Excuse me?"

Harry blinked and smiled. "Gordon Chapman is a rider who seems to like to question my authority. Normally it doesn't bother me, but twice he's pushed me really hard and one time I nearly hit him, he got me that angry."

Harry pointed to a poster on the wall, It was an image of a dragon with a rider on its back. It was clearly reproduced from a newspaper. "Chapman took his dragon out of the Weyr to go shag his girlfriend, resulting in someone snapping that photo. But that wasn't the worst. When we came back from the battle at Balmoral, he started mouthing off about how he would have handled things. His method would have killed half my riders."

Harry frowned and took a deep cleansing breath. In the corner, Chekiath crooned softly and Harry shook from the anger his memory was generating. He looked up at Lewis and smiled weakly. "There are other examples of things I could have handled better, but Chapman seems to be a constant irritant."

"Do you have a plan to resolve these issues?" asked Lewis.

"Harry is being too hard on himself," Chekiath announced suddenly. He almost never spoke during these classes, but he wasn't going to sit back and let Harry put himself down. "Harry thinks more before he speaks. Even when Kirteth's rider was speaking without thinking, Harry considered his response carefully before cutting him down."

Lewis turned to look at Chekiath with a raised eyebrow, then he smiled. "Thank you, Chekiath. You are a powerful advocate for your rider. I am pleased to know he considers his moves. I take it you help him?"

Cheki's eyes twirled in amusement. "Of course. He is mine. I am his. We help each other."

Lewis turned back to Harry with a smile. "There is nothing wrong with showing a subordinate your displeasure. Relationships between yourself and your riders are different than the relationship you might have between yourself and the representative of a country.

"That you recognize you could have handled a situation better is not a bad thing, but it's also a very human condition. You're young and still learning and if I understand your advocate, you're considering your moves more. That's an important step and it's reassuring to know you're doing it this early. Many of us don't develop that sort of restraint until much later," Lewis said gently. "I am also comforted by the idea that your dragon can help you moderate a response. In a way, it's an advantage that I can never duplicate."

He glanced down at his watch, then stood. "I'll leave the tape of the Paris peace talks between Vietnam and the United States with you. We'll watch it when I come next week, but do try to sit through it at least once before hand."

Harry nodded and stood. Lewis placed a tape on Harry's desk, then turned and walked from the room. Harry picked up the video tape and placed next to the brand new player that Lord Mills had purchased for him. He only used it to watch the videos Lewis brought over, or the few tapes that have been made by the Weyr.

"You don't use that machine much do you?" Cheki asked.

Harry looked up from the television/player and shrugged. "My relatives never let me watch anything when I was growing up, so I never developed a taste for it. Remus likes the documentaries, but I have better things to do with my time. Why?"

"Lee and Draco seem to think it's a wonderful thing. I heard Michelle telling May that she had to practically pull him away from the machine. She said he was glued to it, but that can't be right, can it? If he were glued to it wouldn't it stick to him?"

Harry sat in his chair and started to laugh while Cheki watched. "She didn't mean he was literally glued to the TV, mate. She meant he was spending a lot of time in front of it."

Cheki turned his large head and craned his long neck until his chin was nearly resting on Harry's desk. "Why didn't she say that, then?"

"May knew what she meant. It was a way of telling someone something without actually saying the words, while also adding a bit of humor. You know humans sometimes say one thing and mean another," Harry replied.

"Oh, you mean like when Hermione is feeling frisky? And why does Hermione call it frisky and May just says she's horny? She has no horns. I have horns," Chekiath said proudly, letting his horned tail extend into the office space.

Harry looked up in surprise. "Do I want to know?" he asked himself.

"I don't know. Do you want to know? Comaloth says Hermione has all sorts of ways of saying she wants to mate but is afraid to ask you. Trath says you're at the top of May's list. Maybe you should make a list too. That sounds like a smart thing to do. I'd be happy to help you with that."

Harry paled and stood abruptly. "I think I'll run on down to the clinic and talk to Doctor Sheppard. I'd like to find out how the experiment is going," he said in a strangled voice.

"It'll be all right, Harry. I'm certain the girls will be happy to mate with you." Chekiath said reassuringly.

Harry's stomach clenched with butterflies. They both knew very well that Chekiath could rise for his first mating flight any time this month. And Hermione was still convinced that meditation was the key to this issue, but Harry wasn't so sure anymore.

"I hope so," he muttered as he headed for the door.

"I'll go to the lounge while you talk to the Healer," Chekiath announced. There were some very handsome females hanging out in the lounge and he could try using Smelly Dog's flirting lessons, since Harry never flirted.

Main Administration Building, Campbeltown Weyr, December 5th...

"Harry!"

Harry paused at the open doorway and spotted Lord Mills sitting at his desk. Switching directions he entered the office and took a seat.

"I'm surprised you're here. I would have thought you'd still be at Disko," James said with a smile.

Harry stretched out his legs and relaxed a bit. He liked James a lot and he valued what the man did for the Weyr, while still working hard to represent his country. "I was tempted, but the fact is that Lobsang, Frank and Kat need to start exercising their authority. With me there, everyone looks to me to confirm their orders. I only want people to come to me if it's a national issue or one in which dragons or riders are endangered."

James nodded in agreement. Harry had the right of it. He had to give the new leaders a chance to flex their wings and learn to take charge of their riders.

"So, I came back today. Besides, I had a scheduled class with Lewis," Harry said in conclusion.

"How is that going?"

"Okay, I think. Cheki says I'm not so prone to leap into action, but I don't see it. Maybe I'm just to close to the subject to be objective about it. I can see a lot of what Lewis is talking about and it's caused me to think about a lot of things I've done. I really ran roughshod over Ambassador Poulsen, didn't I?"

James laughed and waved Harry's worries away. "You did, but he confided in me that he was actually grateful for it. Sometimes diplomacy crawls at a snails pace. You pushed him into the deep end of the pool and then jumped in with him. He found that rather refreshing."

Harry looked surprised and a bit relieved, but he realized it was a problem he had to address.

"Maybe it worked out right that time, James, but what about all the other people we'll need to introduce dragons to? I can't do that again and I think we both know it," Harry replied with some heat.

James' mirth died away and he looked over at Harry. "No, lad, you can't do that again, but you're taking the right steps, I believe. Lee is working on that film project you put him on. I know Mariah has been showing him how to use a video camera. Soon you'll have a tape you can use to introduce a group of people to the idea before you introduce them to dragons."

"I hope so," Harry replied. "We're going to have to start opening up the Weyr to other nations soon."

"Yes, the Queen was rather emphatic about it at my meeting with her. She believes the Weyr needs to be taken public soon."

Harry looked up with a bit of alarm and interest. "How soon?"

James smiled reassuringly. "Well, she envisions things happening in stages but I wouldn't be surprised if the Weyr was public enough that come next November the hatching will be televised."

Harry blinked and smiled. "I'm not so sure about televising a hatching, but I could easily see opening the Weyr to some select film crews. I know we taped the hatching this time around, but that was for a very limited group of people. A hatching is a very personal thing, James, and I'm not sure the riders would appreciate their impression being viewed on world wide television.

"No, my primary concern is what reception we'll receive. I think it would be foolish to think that everyone is going to fall in love with dragons."

James looked stunned. "What do you mean?"

Harry leaned back in his chair and explained his first meeting with Jasper Brady and the other American who seemed to resent Harry and the dragons for no real understandable reason. As he spoke, James' frown deepened.

"Going public is going to scare some people, James. I firmly believe that we'll go public here in Campbeltown only after we've implemented some tight security. The other Weyrs are going to have to lag behind us because their dragons will still be too immature and the Weyrs aren't ready. Hell, Maziang has no fence around it like we do or Condron does. They don't have the army helping guard them and I'm not sure if Maziang will ever be a public Weyr. Not unless we can get some assurances from the Chinese to leave them alone."

"And Disko," Harry muttered, then he shook his head.

"Disko?" prompted James.

Harry sighed. "Again, no fence, no guards. What's to stop a boatload of people from landing in the middle of a hatching? Most of the dragons would be in the hatching chamber watching. You know I hadn't really considered this, but as I speak to you about it, the more I think we should keep the location of Disko secret, known only to us, your government and the Danes."

James scowled, then he reached for the phone. "I think I'm going to contact Katherine. Let's get her to come over and we can go over this again. I know we can't do anything about the problems at Maziang and Disko, but she's our security expert."

Harry nodded. "I'll asked Norendrath to tell Sirius to join us. He's been handling the airborne patrol and even with more riders, I don't want to take that away from him. He's been having too much fun at it."

James nodded and punched a three digit number on his phone while Harry's eyes glazed over and he called Sirius in.

Office of the Director, MLE, Ministry of Magic, December 13th...

Kingsley stared at Auror Basic Tonks and Senior Auror Wood and scowled thunderously. "Thirteen children injured, some seriously, and a muggle teacher is dead!" he exclaimed. "What the hell were you doing?"

"Chief, that's not fair," protested Wood. "We went to the school like you told us, but we never expected it to be so big!"

Tonks nodded and Shacklebolt sent her a glare that had her cringing back.

He leaned back in his chair and sagged slightly. His inside source had warned him this was going to happen, even told him the date and the place of the attack, and he had screwed it up.

"We were on the other side of the building when the attack happened, chief, By the time we got around to that side, the attacker had apparated away," Wood explained.

Shacklebolt waved him to silence. He was incredibly angry, but in all fairness to Wood and Tonks, he shouldn't be angry with them. He had assigned them to cover a building, thinking that it was a small place. Two aurors were simply not enough to cover a large area.

Now he'd have to live with the consequences, and have to explain it to the Deputy Minister. He wiped a hand across his bald head and absently noted he needed to shave it again. "It's not entirely your fault," he said tiredly. "I sent you there because I knew there was going to be an attack. I thought two should have been able to cover it."

"I should have sent you a message saying we needed more people," Wood admitted. "The only good I can say about this whole mess is that Auror Tonks remembered a lot more of the field first aid than I did. I'm certain she saved some lives today."

Shacklebolt looked over at Tonks and nodded gratefully, "Thank you for that, Tonks," he murmured, then he turned back to Wood. "Go write up your report. I need go talk to my CID counterpart and then we'll have to explain this to the Deputy Minister."

The two aurors nodded and left the room happy to have escaped unscathed from the chief's anger. Mistakes had been made by everyone and children had paid for them in blood. Wood turned to Tonks, "Go start up your report. I want to talk to our on-call healer about some refresher courses in field first aid."

Tonks nodded and turned towards her desk, while Wood walked in the opposite direction. He was determined to make sure this sort of mistake didn't happen on his watch again.

Main Administration building, Campbeltown Weyr, December 13th...

With the sole exception of Hagrid and four riders that had volunteered to help him by staying, most of the riders were returning to the Weyr daily to sleep. Each of the riders looked at their first little Weyr cavern with nostalgia, but with the exception of Harry's Weyr, none had been enlarged for the more mature dragons and Harry's Weyr barely fit Chekiath anymore. The large dragon had blasted out more rock to make room, but that had the added effect of destroying the space enlargement charm resulting in Harry's side of the cavern being especially cramped.

Harry hadn't gotten around to having Remus recast the spell and it wasn't really needed. He had returned to Campbeltown days ago and only traveled to Disko for short visits now.

Sirius and Katherine arrived a little late to the meeting and were surprised to see Harry wasn't present.

"Where's Harry?" Sirius asked.

Hermione looked up from the papers on the table and shrugged. "I don't know. He received an owl about two hours ago. He and I had been working on the plans to integrate the new riders into our wings when the owl arrived and he left shortly after that."

Sirius smirked at Hermione and the other riders. "And I suppose no one thought to have your dragons ask where Chekiath and Harry had gone?"

The riders looked embarrassed and everyone else present chuckled at their discomfort.

"Comaloth, sweetheart, can you bespeak Chekiath and ask where they are? They are supposed to be at a meeting," Hermione sent silently.

"Chekiath is very angry about something and so is the Weyrleader. He went to a healing place for Wizards. Chekiath says they will be there shortly," Comaloth replied after a minute. It was impossible to miss the worry in her dragon's voice. Harry rarely got very angry unless a rider had done something very stupid. That Chekiath was angry was even more alarming to them.

Hermione's mood instantly turned serious and she shared a look between the others present, they had all heard Comaloth's comments.

"I wonder what's happening," Remus said softly, then he turned to Sirius. "I haven't heard about anything. Have you?"

Sirius could only shake his head no and then the door to the room opened and Harry walked in. It was obvious he was very angry. He moved to the front of the table and he turned his attention to Karen Khan. "Do you remember William and Connie?" he asked.

Karen nodded slowly, "Weren't they the kids we met outside of Ollivanders back in October?"

Harry nodded. "There was an attack today. Someone decided that they didn't like the fact that the government is insisting on all magical children aged six and above attend school. Mostly they teach the children the basics of reading, writing, and if they are magical, a little magical history. Today, someone took exception to non-magicals teaching wizard children."

He paused and took a deep breath. "I received an owl from William's mum. She was asking if my dragon could come talk to him. He had been badly injured and he wanted to talk to Chekiath. His teacher had been killed. Someone cast an explosive hex through the window of their class. Over a dozen children were hurt."

Harry took a shuddering breath and looked down as he continued to speak. "His mum wrote asking for Chekiath to come, the healers weren't sure he'd make it and he wanted to say goodbye to Cheki."

Harry sat heavily and wiped at his face. "It never changes," he muttered angrily.

"Harry, did he?" Karen asked in a whisper. She hadn't interacted with William like Harry had, but the idea that a small child could have been killed by some uncaring bigot sickened her. That she knew the person, even superficially, made her feel like she was going to throw up.

Harry looked up at her bleakly. "He nearly died, but Chekiath told him he couldn't leave. Cheki said his sister would miss him and he'd never get to ride a dragon if he left. Somehow," he replied, then he took a shuddering breath. "Somehow, he rallied and the healers coaxed him through the crisis. They're pretty certain he'll recover now but it was so close. As it is, he'll have trouble walking for the rest of his life.

"I could hear Chekiath telling him he couldn't leave and hear William telling him how tired he was. Chekiath said he had to stay, that it wasn't his time. All the time Chekiath clung to the outside wall of the building with his head just outside the window where William could see him. I thought the healer was going to have a heart attack when he appeared in the window. We promised him and his sister a ride on a dragon when he gets better.

"This is a disaster. St. Mungos was filled with angry parents and terrified and injured children and I won't be surprised if there isn't a magical student in a single class come tomorrow. This is going to be a big blow to the government and their efforts. They don't have enough people to guard the schools and still provide basic law enforcement," he said, then he sighed heavily. "I didn't want us involved but I'll be damned if I'll let another kid like William get hurt if I can stop it."

Lord Mills leaned forward anxiously. "What are you planning on doing?" he asked worriedly.

Harry shrugged. "It's not like the wizards are filling every school in the country. There are... what? Nine regular schools that are taking in Wizard children, plus the new all wizard school in Hogsmeade?"

"Don't forget the eight Hedge academies and Hogwarts," added Draco.

Harry nodded. "So that makes nineteen total schools. We can easily place two pairs of dragons over each school for the duration of the school day. The dragons should be able to get enough of a warning to do something, even if it means setting someone on fire. Obviously that would be a last resort, but the option is there."

Harry fell silent for a moment, then he turned to Lord Mills. "Arrange to meet with the Prime Minister. Tell him the Weyr will help guard the schools and hopefully prevent this from happening again. Tell him to inform the wizarding public that we'll be there and we'll use lethal force if necessary to safeguard the children."

Harry clenched his fists, then he abruptly stood. "We'll put the rest of this meeting off until tomorrow," he said curtly, then he turned and walked out, leaving a room full of surprised people.

"What is that all about?" Hermione asked. Harry was never that abrupt or that quick to use lethal force unless he was protecting dragons.

"Chekiath is due to take his first mating flight any day now. Sinnath told me that Chekiath has been restraining himself because things were too hectic and Harry didn't need the distraction," Draco replied. "I've watched both of them for the past few days. His dragon is so bronze colored you'd swear he'd ring like a bell if you tapped him. I've also noted that both of them are really on edge. I think in this case, Chekiath is still affecting Harry. Sinnath says Chekiath is irritable and working very hard to control it. Hearing about a child that they know being hurt just pushed them a bit too far today."

"If this keeps up I'm going to have to get a bottle of fire whiskey and get Harry plastered just to get him to calm down," Sirius offered.

Remus turned to admonish Sirius and was surprised to see the man looking very serious. Sirius shrugged. "He's acting almost like James did when Charlus and Dorea were killed."

He looked around at the blank looks and grimaced. "Harry's grandparents were killed when Voldemort rose to power in the seventies. Charlus and Dorea had taken me in when my own family kicked me out. They were the parents that I never had. When they were killed, James hid it from me for two weeks, claiming they were on vacation, but eventually he broke down and told me the truth. Harry right now is acting like his dad did back then. He was hurting so very much and he didn't want me to feel bad so he hid it and suppressed things until it started tearing him apart."

Sirius trailed off and fell silent, reminiscing about what had been. So Remus picked up with the tale. "If I remember rightly, you got James roaring drunk before he broke down and cried."

Sirius smiled sadly. "I did, and I was ever so grateful for your hangover cure. The summer before our seventh year changed everything for us. I don't know what we would have done if it hadn't been for Albus and Minnie stopping by every few days to make sure we were alright. Thankfully, we were both of age, otherwise the ministry would have stepped in.

"When we returned to school, Lily knew instantly that something was terribly wrong with James. She had spent the first six years ignoring him. I think she would have continued to ignore him, but even she couldn't ignore how he had changed when his parents were killed."

Katherine reached out and placed her hand over Sirius'. He glanced over to her and shrugged an apology. It startled him how much an old memory could still hurt. Katherine's gesture of support solidified his own understanding of his feelings for her and he decided it was time to do something about them.

"So what can we do for Harry?" Katherine asked.

"I'm not sure we can do anything," Draco said in reply. "He's not the Potter that he was at the beginning of last year. Last year he'd be yelling and screaming, today he was coldly angry. He's angry and he wants to do something, but his options are limited. He chose the only real one he has. Provide some sort of security for the schools and hope it's enough. I think we all need to also understand that our dragons will affect our behavior."

Hermione dropped her eyes, not wanting to admit to anyone or even herself that the dragons could affect their behavior that much.

Sirius stood and Katherine eyed him with suspicion. "Where do you think you're going?" she asked.

He grinned. "Relax, I'm not going for fire whiskey. There's a toy maker in Germany that makes some of the best enchanted animal toys. I thought I'd go floo him and see if he has any dragons and maybe some other toys for the children. Being in hospital sucks as an adult, it's got to be worse as a kid."

He gave her a jaunty salute and walked from the room. She stared at his retreating back for a moment longer. "I swear," she muttered. "Sometimes I want to strangle him and then he does something like this."

Everyone chuckled as they rose to go about their business.

Harry's Quarters, Campbeltown Weyr, December 15th...

Harry looked up from his desk when he heard the knock at the door. "Come!" he called.

Lee Jordan opened the door and stuck his head through the opening. "Hey, Harry, how goes?" he said, flashing Harry a brilliant smile.

Harry grinned. "Hey, mate. I take it your here for your weekly pickup."

Lee nodded and stepped into the room. He carried a large bucket with him and a shoulder bag. "I don't think we'll be doing this much longer for you," he said.

Harry glanced over at Cheki, who was lightly dozing in his bed. "Yeah, I guess," he said softly, then he reached into a bin and pulled out a dozen scales. "It seems like only yesterday when he was dropping fifty of these in a week. Now we barely have a dozen."

Harry handed the scales to Lee, who separated three scales and wrote an "H" on them before placing them in his shoulder bag.

Harry looked at him quizzically and Lee grinned sheepishly.

"All right, Lee, why are you separating some of the scales out?"

Lee looked embarrassed and Harry motioned for him to take a chair. Harry waited until he was seated then he sat across from him.

"I'll be the first to say that most of this stuff we're learning is going over my head. I mean, making the video tape is fun and I'm learning a lot, but it's still not really enough. I want to pull my weight," Lee said.

"Have I ever given you the idea that you're not?" Harry asked him curiously.

Lee looked up at Harry in shock. "Merlin no, Harry. I guess it's just that sometimes I feel overwhelmed by things, you know?"

Harry nodded. It was a feeling he could understand very well. "And the scales you're singling out?"

Lee reached into a pocket and pulled out a very short wand that couldn't be more than six inches long. It also didn't look like any wand he had ever seen before. Lee held out the wand towards Harry, grip first and Harry reached to take it.

There was a blinding flash of intense light and all the window's in Harry's bungalow exploded outwards.

Lee looked at Harry in awe. "Merlin, mate, I didn't blow out windows first time I touched that. I just made a bright light."

Harry looked down at the wand. It glowed softly in his hand and had a distinct shimmer to it. It pulsed in his hand, literally vibrating as if it wanted him to cast something. "Where did you get this?"

Lee looked at him proudly. "I made it," he replied.

Harry looked up from the wand in surprise and Lee's grin broadened. "Soranth isn't a big dragon like Cheki, but I took a bunch of his scales and cut them up, then I carefully glued them together. What you hold is a wand that contains no wood at all. It's all core."

Harry flipped on his desk lamp and tilted it so he could examine the wand better. Even under the bright light there was a slight glow to the short wand. It was very rigid and Harry could clearly see the layers of scale and glue. There were at least thirty pieces of scale that had gone into making the wand and providing its one inch diameter. It also looked like it had been carefully sanded down to take off the sharp edges. It felt strange to see a wand that wasn't round like an Ollivander wand.

Harry handed the wand back to Lee with a bit of reluctance. Lee accepted the wand and chuckled. "I don't blame you, but wait til I give you one made from Cheki's scales." He looked around, then laughed. "But you might want to take it from me when you're not indoors."

Harry laughed and nodded. "I look forward to it," he replied. "I wonder if there's a market for these?"

Lee looked shocked. "I don't know. I never thought about it. I was only interested in making them for our magical riders. Do you think there would be any interest?"

"Among the riders, certainly," Harry replied. "As a wand for wizards, I'm not sure. They seem really powerful. Maybe the ministry might be interested for the DMLE, but until you make a few more, we'll never know."

Seeing Lee looking a bit chagrined, he sighed. "Let me guess. You've already made a couple extra and two just happened to find their way to Hogwarts and a certain pair of red heads?"

When Lee moved to protest, Harry held up his hand. "I'm not complaining and I'm not about to chew you out for sending your friends a gift. But let's see if we can get a handle on these before anyone else knows about them. Send Fred and George a note asking to keep the wands hidden and to not reveal their source."

"They would have done that anyway, Harry. The ministry doesn't like wizards having more than one wand. I know Fred and George. They'll only use them for pranks, which will drive the teachers crazy since their regular wands will come up clean when checked," Lee said with a grin.

Harry nodded with a smile. "Good enough. Make up a half dozen or so wands from the extra scales and we'll see what we can do with them. I'll speak to Karen about them, let her know we may have another income source, thanks to you."

Lee looked proud of himself and Harry knew he deserved the praise. As he headed for the door, Harry stopped him again. "Lee?"

He stopped at the door and turned? "Yes?"

"Well done," Harry said with a smile.

Lee's color deepened and he nodded, then he left the room.

Disko Island Weyr, December 17th...

Harry came out of Between high over the bowl at Disko and he chuckled. His dragon always seemed to know when he needed a little time to compose himself. He surveyed the bowl below with approval. Most of the tents had been taken down already. In a very short amount of time only three tents would remain, the administration tent and the original two tents set up as dormitories. They were the closest thing to permanent structures that they had at Disko.

The goblins promised decades or more of safety from the volcano, but even they couldn't postpone the inevitable. Someday the volcano would blow and Harry didn't want to waste resources on something that they would lose someday. The Goblin ward on the volcano would provide the Weyr with a seven day advance warning, more than enough time to evacuate the Weyr if it was occupied at the time.

He absently noted that Draco and his wing were lining up the riders below in a neat formation. Soon, the riders would take off for their first long distance jump to Campbeltown Weyr. Each new rider would have to share the jump imagery they had with two Campbeltown riders. Only after the Campbeltown riders approved of the imagery would the new rider get the go ahead to make the jump using their own imagery.

In a sense, this was a final exam for the new riders. Up until this point they have been taking short hops around the island, or longer ones with the jump imagery supplied by an experienced rider.

"Let's land, Cheki. I'm sure we have a lot of eager people who want to get started," Harry ordered.

Chekiath rumbled and then he pitched up and over, folding his wings close to his body as they entered into a steep dive. Harry yelled in surprise and then in happiness at the sheer thrill of the acrobatic maneuver.

Down in the bowl, Michelle looked up and shuddered. "I don't know how he can do that!" she exclaimed.

Draco glanced up and smiled. "He's a bit of a nut case when he's flying. You should have seen him on a broom," he replied, then he glanced around, surprised to see the shocked expressions of the new riders as they watched the Weyrleader and his dragon plummet in what looked like a suicidal dive.

Michelle turned to Draco. "You do know half the time he doesn't bother to connect up his harness? He's setting a bad example."

Draco nodded. "I'll speak to him about it. He isn't doing it intentionally, it's just that he has more flight experience than any of us, including combat flight. He probably finds the harness restricting."

Privately, Draco agreed with Harry. They were restricting and he disliked using it. His dragon, Sinnath, was a Hebridean Black and it was one of the shorter breeds. It was also highly maneuverable in the air, capable of making turns far quicker than any of the larger dragons. Draco enjoyed such high speed agile flights and, like Harry, found the safety harness to be too restricting.

But he wasn't about to tell Michelle that. She and Luna had been instrumental in the creation of the flight harnesses.

Draco turned his attention back to the plunging pair just in time to see Chekiath's wings extend and his dive flatten out. He flew in low, just above the heads of the dragons, then he pulled up and around, circling while he bled off airspeed. Finally, he came in for a gentle landing and Harry dismounted with a practiced flair.

Harry walked over to where Draco and Michelle stood with the other Weyrleaders. As he approached, he pulled off his gloves and helm and grinned at the group.

"You're insane. Has anyone told you that?" asked Kat bluntly.

Harry grinned and shrugged. "I like to fly," he said.

She shook her head and turned to Skip, hoping he'd reinforce her comment.

Unfortunately, Skip had no such idea in mind. "That was incredible!" he exclaimed. "How did you manage to stay on? I would have sworn you were going over three hundred miles an hour!"

Kat looked at him sourly.

"Closer to four hundred. We've clocked the speed of dragons in a dive at nearly double their regular speed and Chekiath is among the fastest of the dragons. As to being blown off, that can't happen. The dragons exert some sort of shield when they have a rider," Michelle explained. "We discovered that measuring wind speed as a way of telling our flying speed was a bad idea. No matter how fast a dragon flies, we only feel a twenty mile an hour breeze."

Skip looked at Michelle incredulously, while Kat looked thoughtful. Harry stepped in, deciding they needed to get the show on the road. There would be plenty of time later to talk about some of the more unusual aspects of dragons.

Harry walked to a spot where all the riders could see him and he grinned at their eager faces. For them, the adventure was about to begin and it would last their entire lives.

"Thirty days ago your lives changed forever," he said in a loud voice, "Thirty days ago you became dragon riders. Now you're half way through your training and you're about to embark on a world wide tour of every Weyr on the planet. Someday, some of you may decide to return to an unoccupied Weyr and start it as a bona fide Weyr with riders. Others will remain in your parent Weyr for the rest of your lives. Either way, your future is wide open to you. As dragon riders, I know you will take control of that future for the benefit of yourself, your dragon and your Weyr. I know you'll be good riders."

He paused and let the dragons translate for Lobsang and his people.

"You have practiced short hops Between. Today, you'll make your first long distance hop to Campbeltown Weyr. First you will take the jump imagery from one of Draco's riders. Then you will pass the imagery on to two other riders from Marty Benson's wing. If the dragons approve of your imagery, you will be able to pass it on to your dragon and make the jump Between."

The riders looked at Harry strangely since only Hagrid and Draco's Wing three were present. He heard Chekiath pass a command to Olaronth. A moment passed in silence, then Wing Two appeared overhead, circling the Weyr.

Harry smirked at the three new Weyrleaders and he made a mental note to take them aside and talk to them about passing commands via their dragons. "Let's get your wings aloft," he said quietly.

The three stared at him and he laughed, then waved them to their dragons. "They are your wings, people. Get them airborne," he said firmly.

Lobsang was the first to move. He turned to his group and shouted something to them, then he trotted over to Jekrith and scrambled up into position. Kat grabbed Skip and pulled them towards their dragons.

Draco turned to Harry with a chuckle. "They didn't expect that."

Harry nodded. "I know but I'm not always going to be there. They have to lead their Weyrs. And yes, I know I didn't use my harness. I'll try to remember it next time," he said, then he grinned at Draco, "Or at least not get caught without it."

Draco chuckled and gave a hand signal to his wing, who had been waiting patiently. They went airborne, joining the wings circling above.

Harry trotted back to Chekiath and climbed up onto his shoulders. He frowned and connected himself to the flying harness, then he motioned for Chekiath to get airborne. "Let's go home, Cheki. We'll meet them as they arrive."

"Yes, Harry. You know you don't need that thing. I'd never let you fall," replied Cheki. He sounded somewhat affronted that Harry would think he needed the harness.

Harry sighed. "I know, but I have to set an example in front of the new riders. We'll find plenty of time when we don't have others watching to fly without it."

Chekiath popped Between. The riders were on the move and a sense of excitement spread to the dragons around the world. This was the third successful hatching and they were all comforted by it. The Weyrleader was holding to his promise of reuniting dragons and man.

Weyr Social Hall, Campbeltown Weyr, December 20th...

It was after dinner and most of the riders were settling in for an evening of homework and socializing in the hall. The new riders were on their way, escorted by six experienced riders, the adult chaperones and Hagrid. In Campbeltown, things were finally settling back into the routine of classes and participating in various experiments for Sir Robert.

Dan and Emma had returned to Campbeltown, allowing an extra set of parents from Campbeltown to provide chaperone service to the British contingent. Like the riders, Dan and Emma had both grown to consider Campbeltown home.

May walked into the hall and sat heavily in a chair across from Susan and Hermione. Both girls shot her a quizzical look and she tiredly pushed one of her blond locks behind an ear. "We have a very sick dragon in the infirmary. It's taken three of us to provide the care he needs. He'll pull through, but it takes a lot out of us," May explained.

The other girls nodded knowingly. They all pulled their share of Infirmary duty, although only May and three others worked in the infirmary on a regular basis. Everyone present knew they had been extraordinarily lucky so far. They'd never lost a dragon who was sick from an infection, but knew it was only a matter of time.

May cracked open her math textbook, then she looked around. "Where's Harry?"

The girls exchanged a look between them then they turned back to look at May. "I haven't seen him since just before dinner," Hermione admitted with a touch of irritation in her tone. "He said something about feeling a little off and wanted to turn in early. He didn't want to study tonight."

Michelle turned around in her chair and looked at her. "Off? I swear, Hermione, sometimes I wonder how you can easily pretend to not to see what's plainly in front of your nose," she said heatedly. She opened her mouth to speak again when they heard a dragon bellow. It was a common occurrence, one of the non-bonded females was starting a shagging flight. It was a term invented by Lee Jordan and despite the best efforts of people like Sir Robert, the name stuck.

"What do you mean, Michelle?" asked Hermione in annoyance.

"Enith is flying and Chekiath is covering her," announced Comaloth excitedly. All of the bonded dragons had been waiting for Chekiath to start joining in on the shagging flights. It was a sure sign that their time was near and they were growing up. Enith was a non-bonded female Horntail several years older than Chekiath. She would not have allowed Chekiath to cover her if she hadn't felt he was an adult. As it was, Chekiath had managed to delay his joining in these flights by nearly a month. He had been expected to begin in November.

A silence fell in the hall and multiple eyes turned to watch Hermione. All the girls knew this was a make or break time for her.

Emma sat at a nearby table with Dan watching their daughter with concern. With the Americans and the Tibetan group having adults along, they decided that they weren't needed as chaperones this time around. Emma privately told Harry that she wasn't all that thrilled about a trip around the world in winter. Emma looked up and eyed her daughter for a moment, the confusion was evident on her face. She had had conversations with Hermione about what she would do when Harry's dragon became sexually active.

Hermione had not told her mother about her opinion that they could meditate through the experience. Instead, she had made excuses about being able to handle things. It was quickly becoming clear to Emma that Hermione's plans were not as well thought out as she had made them out to be.

The silence stretched out for several long minutes with Hermione studiously staring at her book and ignoring everyone around her. Several girls stood and moved away from Hermione. It was obvious that she was angering a number of the girls. Hermione might not realize it, but she was clearly telling everyone present that Harry was on his own and she intended to renounce any claim she had on him.

When the girls resettled in their seats, only Emma noticed that one girl had slipped from the room. She sighed and prayed that things would work themselves out but she was sure her daughter had just opted to make her life very difficult.

Hermione buried her nose in her book and tried to ignore the angry glares coming from so many girls. Harry would be fine at meditating through this shagging flight. She was sure of that.

Harry's Quarters, Campbeltown Weyr, December 20th/21st...

"Petrificus Partialus," whispered a voice.

Harry froze on his bed. He was naked from the waist down and, until he had been spelled, he was trying frantically for a release that he could not achieve alone. It didn't help matters that he had practically rubbed himself bloody.

It was obvious to her that Harry had to be in terrible pain and still the compulsion from his dragon forced him to continue despite that pain.

Harry's arms snapped to his sides as if they were glued.

A wand waved and the lighting dimmed.

"Who's there?" Harry said hoarsely. The bond between him and his dragon was driving him insane and only the fact that his arms were bound tightly to his body prevented him from continuing to try to find some release from the urges flooding through him.

"Shhh," said a voice.

Harry blinked and looked towards the door where a figure stood. "What are you doing?" he exclaimed. "Come closer so I can see you!"

Susan Bones stepped out of the darkness and she cast two healing spells on him and he breathed a sigh of relief, then she turned and started to unbutton her blouse.

"Harry, I know you don't love me," she said softly with a hint of sadness. "But I don't want my first time to be out of my control. The petrificus spell will wear off in a few minutes and you'll be free to move. I know you, Harry. With someone here, willing to be your first, you'll control the lust you feel. You'll be gentle. You won't let what your dragon feels allow you to hurt someone else."

Harry watched her disrobe and he licked his lips. Susan was a very pretty girl with large breasts. Just the sight of her was enough to send the lust raging through his veins.

"Harry, concentrate. Remember who you are," she said gently. "You're strong enough to do this. Come back to yourself and I'll let you have what you want so very much."

His dragon was mating and the feelings of absolute lust ran through him, transmitted from his dragon. Slowly, however, her words sunk in and he understood what she was saying, what she was offering. He wrestled with the feelings from his bond, shoving them to one side and doing his best to ignore them. Once she had managed to get him to understand her, controlling the bond turned out to be very easy. It was only when he was alone and had no one to help him control it that the problem arose.

She undid the button and let her skirt slip to the floor. She slid her panties off and then sat on the edge of the bed. He could feel the heat from her body, and he could see her pleading look. She was scared of him and of her first time.

"Can you do that Harry? Can you control yourself to make love to me? I'm not asking for anything Harry, just make my first time a good one."

Harry reached up with one trembling hand and resisted the urge to paw at her ample breasts. Instead, he opted to caress her cheek. Susan smiled shyly at him, she knew he was imposing his iron will on what he felt from Chekiath. He pulled her gently down into his embrace,

"Lets try to make our first time a good one for both of us," he whispered.

She kissed him lightly on the lips and snuggled down into his arms. They both thought of Hermione for a brief moment, then they pushed her from their thoughts. There were more important things right now. Hermione had made her choice.

It was nearly ten in the morning when Harry woke up for the second time. Susan had woken him at five because she wanted to speak to him. Harry was a bit taken aback by her attitude, but he understood that she wasn't looking for a relationship. She personally felt that he was great guy, but not the guy for her.

After she dropped that little bombshell on him and he had time to think about it, he realized she was probably right. And then to his surprise she asked shyly if they could make love again. He fell asleep around seven in the morning and when he awoke, he was alone again. It was an uncomfortable feeling, being alone again, but they had decided to remain friends who might someday share something special again.

Harry rolled to a sitting position and threw his feet over the edge of the bed.

"I told you that you'd be more relaxed," Cheki said smugly.

Harry glanced over at his dragon and grinned. Last night had been an awkward experience that got progressively better for both of them as the night went on. And while he hadn't exactly asked her, he desperately hoped that she had enjoyed herself as much as he did. It never occurred to him that her waking him up for a encore performance might be a clue that she did.

"Yeah, I guess you were right," he admitted. He reached out and wandlessly summoned his boxers from the floor, then he pulled them on. "I'll take a quick shower and then we'll go for our jog. I know it's late, but I think for once we can skive off classes."

Harry wasn't in the shower five minutes when Chekiath interrupted him. "Harry? Ronan is here asking to speak to you."

Harry scowled. He liked long hot showers. They were a luxury that he didn't have on Privet drive. "Fine. Tell him I'll be out in a few minutes."

A few minutes later he stepped from his bedroom still rubbing his hair with his towel. He looked at Ronan with an expression of concern. "Something tells me you have a problem," he said.

Ronan nodded. "Well, I don't, but I think you may have one. No, strike that, I'm pretty sure you do. Congratulations, by the way."

Harry blinked at Ronan in surprise. "What are you talking about?"

Ronan sat on a chair and Harry took a seat on the couch. "This morning in the kitchen hall there was a bit of a dust up between Hermione and Susan."

Harry groaned to himself and Ronan grinned at him.

"I was sitting in the hall having a cup when Hermione entered and literally steamed up to Susan, who was minding her business and just filling her breakfast tray."

"You slept with Harry last night, didn't you?" Hermione demanded.

Susan looked at Hermione and frowned. Hermione hadn't done anything to moderate her voice. The whole hall fell silent, watching the two girls. Susan hadn't planned on keeping the fact that she slept with Harry secret, but she didn't have any plans about making an issue out of it either. As far as Susan was concerned, it was a one off thing that she didn't have any plans of repeating.

"It's not like it's any of your business, Hermione," Susan said calmly. "You made it abundantly clear last night that Harry was a free agent."

Hermione scowled thunderously. "I did no such thing. Harry said he was going to meditate through Cheki's mating flight. That's what we decided."

"No," Susan countered, "that's what you decided. You made that decision for both of you without asking Harry what he thought about it."

"If he couldn't keep it in his pants," Hermione began.

Susan jumped all over her. "Hermione, stop it this instant. Yes, I slept with Harry last night. When I entered his bedroom he was totally out of control. I had to put him in a body bind, heal him, then talk some sense into him. You could have done that! He wanted his first time to be with you, but you decided to ignore all of the signs, convinced you were right. Well, you know what? You were wrong. Harry and I are not a couple. I wanted my first time to be better than a dragon induced frenzy. Once I managed to calm him down enough, he grabbed control of his bond instead of letting it control him. Before that, he was hurting himself.

"Face it, Hermione, you lost more than just a boyfriend last night. You lost the respect of a lot of people. You made a decision, forced it on Harry, and then got mad because he can't conform your concept of an idea." Susan said, then she picked up her tray and walked to a table with May and several of the other girls.

Hermione stood there for a moment longer, then she stormed from the hall with Emma in hot pursuit.

Harry buried his head in his hands. "Oh, man, what a mess."

Ronan gave him an apologetic shrug. "Look, Harry, this is still up in the air. It's the opinion of nearly everyone that the whole 'meditate' business was silly, even you weren't sure about it. With the exception of Hermione, no one thinks you did anything wrong. And on top of that, Susan's comments about a dragon induced frenzy have a lot of people sure that it's better to get it out of the way now, before the dragons rise. Hermione can either accept that it happened or she can be a prig about it."

Harry lifted his face from his hands and he looked at Ronan. "What do you think I should do?"

Ronan leaned back in his chair and thought for a moment. "I think," he said carefully, like he was weighing each word. "that you should let Hermione make the decision. But I would strongly suggest you don't let her badger you into thinking you're wrong. You did nothing wrong that you need apologize for. There are a lot of people angry with her today, especially when Susan made it clear you were hurting yourself before she went to you."

Harry winced and nodded unhappily. The one fact he couldn't deny was that he had wanted Hermione to be with him for his first time. That fact hurt him more than any other possible problem he might have with her in the near future. That she hadn't been there for him cut as deeply as when she abandoned him to the tournament.

"I think I'll spend the day working on some things in my office," he said finally. He wasn't looking for a fight with Hermione and he wasn't about to start one.

Ronan stood and patted Harry on the shoulder, then he turned and left the room.

Harry glanced over at Cheki. "What a mess, eh?"

"I was surprised to see Susan here last night. Comaloth told me she isn't happy with her rider now," Chekiath replied.

Harry looked stunned. It was the first time since she impressed that Hermione was called anything but Hermione. He hated to think that she'd now be referred to as Comaloth's rider. It would signal Chekiath's dislike for her.

He was grateful to Susan and the more he sat brooding, the more annoyed he was with Hermione. He had voiced his doubts about meditation on several occasions and she had overridden him each time.

Hermione's Quarters, Campbeltown Weyr, December 21st...

"Hermione?"

Hermione looked up from sitting on her bed. She was very angry and was slowly twisting her pillow beyond recognition. "Mum?"

Emma stepped into her daughter's bedroom and sat in a chair by her desk. "Hermione," she said slowly, "I know you're hurting right now."

"I'm not hurt, I'm angry, very angry, at Harry for what he did."

Emma's mouth snapped shut and she frowned. Her daughter had engaged her single mindedness at full force and there was no escaping it until she calmed down.

"I spoke briefly with Susan because she said some things that had me curious. Harry did try to meditate like you wanted. When that didn't work, he attempted to masturbate to some sort of release. When Susan went to him he had practically rubbed himself bloody and wasn't able to stop. She had to put him in a body bond and then talk to him and help him regain control of himself."

"He should have been able to control himself. He's just like any other boy! All they want is sex!" Hermione spat.

Emma stood and sighed, then she shook her head. "You're impossible to talk to when you're like this. You get it from your father, but fortunately he outgrew it. Come see me if you want to talk after you calm down."

Emma turned and left the room, leaving Hermione staring at the empty doorway. The sound of her front door slamming shut caused her to wince. She hurled her pillow across the room, then flung herself across her bed.

Comaloth watched silently from her corner, deeply unhappy. Her rider was hurting and in her hurt she was hurting others. She closed her eyes and took comfort from the many dragons telling her things would be alright.

Social Hall, Campbeltown Weyr, December 21st...

A tense quiet filled the hall that evening. Harry had been conspicuous in his absence most of the day, while Hermione went about her daily routine of classes and Weyr duties. She hadn't spoken to anyone except in the course of her Weyr duties.

The tension in the Weyr translated into the hall dividing tonight, with the girls on one side and the boys on the other. There was a clear division between them as they tried to figure out what was happening.

The door opened and Harry walked in, looking rather unhappy. Every eye turned to him and he nodded in greeting, then he walked to the front of the large room. He surveyed the riders and the others present and he grinned weakly at them. "I know you're all picked up on what's going on between Hermione and myself. And for that I apologize deeply. It was my intention to never allow any personal issues between riders affect the performance of the Weyr and now my own personal problems have done just that. For that I apologize."

He paused and looked down, then he took a deep breath. "Tomorrow there will be a Wing Leadership meeting at eleven o'clock. I understand that after tomorrow, we'll end classes until January fifth. That includes magical classes, although you can continue working on any special projects. The minibus will be available to take anyone into Campbeltown proper for any Christmas shopping you might have.

"If you have plans to return home for the holidays, please make sure you speak to Sirius before you go. Remember, only your immediate family is to know your whereabouts or your activities. Hopefully next Christmas you'll be able to invite your entire family here to the Weyr. It ought to be interesting to see if we can talk a dragon or two into pulling a sleigh."

Harry grinned at them then he turned, poured himself a hot cup of tea and walked over to sit with Sirius, Katherine, Remus and Mildred.

Sirius looked at him, concerned. "All right there, Harry?"

Harry shook his head. "No, not really," he said softly. "I'm kicking myself for letting this affect the Weyr. Personally, I'm annoyed and more then just embarrassed. Chekiath assures me there won't be a repeat of last night, which is a relief. As to Hermione..."

He trailed off and looked down at his drink, his expression was decidedly unhappy.

"Harry, I think it took a lot of courage to get up there and apologize for letting your personal life affect your job," Katherine said softly. "I know this hasn't been easy for you and I don't know many superior officers that would have done that."

He looked at Katherine for a moment, then he nodded. He was greatly relieved that Sirius wasn't turning this into a joke. It was painful enough as it is. Perhaps in ten years he'd be able to laugh about this. He turned back to Sirius. "I can't speak from experience, but do you remember the potions class that covered the forbidden potions?"

Sirius blinked and nodded slowly, "Yeah, old man Slughorn talked about them. They were potions that were illegal to make. You'd earn a five year stay in Azkaban if you were caught making one. Why?"

"Because until Susan put me in a body bind, the only description I can give that makes any sense would be I acted like I had been dosed with a weak version of the Lust of Eros," Harry said.

The two non-magical women frowned at Harry, having no clue what he was talking about.

Remus leaned in a little closer. "Are you certain?" he pressed.

Harry flushed. "Of course I'm not certain. I've never taken that potion. What I do know, however, was that the urges were overwhelming until Susan showed up and talked enough to reach me," he said, then he dropped his gaze to his cup refusing to look at any of them.

"I don't understand," Mildred said, "What's the Lust of Eros?"

Remus turned to her. "Think of alcoholic drinks. Some are very weak and you need to drink a lot of them before you even get a buzz, and some are very strong. Even a single drink is enough to get you tipsy, and too much can actually hurt you."

Katherine and Mildred nodded in understanding.

"There are potions that are like that. For example, there are potions which make you want to have sex, but it's a mild feeling. Typically, it's something shared between two willing partners. There are stronger versions which have a stronger effect and they enhance the experience. There are varying degrees of potency and usually the potion is designed for specific effects."

He paused and looked over at the two ladies, who nodded to him. "Harry mentioned one of the forbidden potions. It's a lust potion so strong it can turn a ninety year old vicar into a rampaging rapist. Pairs that have taken the potion together have been known to couple until they collapse and die from exhaustion."

"I was all right once Susan started talking to me. But when I was alone," Harry said, then he trailed into silence and shivered slightly at the memory. He loathed the feeling of being out of control like that.

"Perhaps we should issue calming droughts to the riders?" offered Sirius.

Harry's head shot up and he stared at Sirius in surprise. "That's brilliant! Yes, a simple calming drought would make the effect manageable."

"Are you sure, Harry?" asked Remus worriedly. "That potion would have no effect on someone dosed with the lust of Eros."

Harry waved a hand, dismissing the comment. "I said it was 'like' that potion, not that it was the potion. Just stock in enough potion to give to the riders to help them maintain control for that first flight."

"There you are!"

Harry looked up to see Lord Mills coming towards him. "Is there a problem, James? I know I was unavailable most of today."

James sat down and shook his head. "Problem? No, no problem at all. But I was wondering about something. Sirius and Remus will be out of the Weyr for the next few days. I was wondering if you'd like to come spend a couple days at my place. My son, William, will be home from university and we were planning on a good old fashioned family Christmas."

Harry blinked in surprise and he turned to Sirius, who was suddenly blushing. "Well, Katherine wants me to meet her parents, so we're going spend the holiday with them," Sirius, then he moaned. "I'm so doomed."

"Sirius, knock it off," Katherine said patiently. "My father might be a tough old brigadier, but my Mum will love you."

Harry nodded and turned to Remus, who shrugged.

"I was asked to visit some doctors in the States. They want to run some special tests the day after Christmas. After that, Mildred offered to show me some of the more interesting sights, since we have a dragon helping us move about."

"I'll bet," Sirius said with a nasty laugh.

Mildred blushed, but she didn't deny it either.

Harry leaned a little closer. "Tests? Is everything all right?"

"Relax, Harry," Mildred said. "They asked Remus to come for an MRI because he's the only one of the test subjects not complaining about some of the side effects of the treatment."

Harry nodded thoughtfully. He had heard that everyone taking the treatment for Lycanthropy usually had bad headaches on the day following the full moon. All except Remus.

Harry turned to James and smiled. "Thank you for asking. I'd be happy to join you for the holiday. I'll make sure Chekiath eats before we leave. I'd rather he doesn't eat into your livestock anymore."

James grinned. He had hoped he could pull Harry away for a few days of rest. He knew the lad never really experienced a family Christmas before and he hoped he'd be able to give him a taste of what it was like.

The Granger Bungalow, Campbeltown Weyr, December 25th...

Emma opened the door and Hermione gave her a weak smile. She had an armload of gifts, but the events of the past week had cast a pall over the holiday. Smiling in return, Emma stepped away so her daughter could enter.

The riders had started talking to Hermione again after Luna pulled the girls to one side and told them point blank that Hermione was family and you don't turn your family into outcasts. Luna also reminded them that by ostracizing Hermione, they were going against Harry's rule of allowing personal feelings to interfere with Weyr operations.

Hermione was grateful that they were talking to her again, but she couldn't put away the hurt she felt every time she looked at Harry. She blamed him for her unhappiness and refused to see that he was just as unhappy by what had happened.

To Emma, it was a typical teen melodrama and something she never suspected her daughter would ever be involved in. Privately, she felt her daughter was wrong and being unfair to Harry, but she had also promised to never interfere.

She watched Hermione place the gifts under their tree, then she turned and smiled when Susan walked in, also carrying an armload of gifts. This was Susan's first Christmas as part of their family and Emma had already warned Hermione to keep a civil tongue in her head. She didn't want this to devolve into a fight between the two girls.

"Just put them under the tree, Susan," Emma said with a broad smile. Dan stepped out of their bedroom and watched the growing pile of gifts and shook his head.

"There are so many gifts the tree is going to have to be moved out of the way," he said. "Happy Christmas, girls."

"Happy Christmas, Daddy," Hermione said, giving him a bit of a smile.

"Happy Christmas... Dad," Susan said. She still stumbled over that. She had been raised by her Auntie and the Grangers told her to call them Mum and Dad, something she had never called anyone before.

Dan walked over and gave each of his girls a kiss and a hug. "Well, another year and another Christmas. Let's hope our next year isn't as hectic, eh? Emma, how about some tea and we'll get around to these gifts."

Emma nodded and started to turn when Dobby appeared with a small pop.

"Dobby?" she exclaimed.

The little elf grinned. "Harry Potter sir asked me to deliver these gifts," he announced, handing her four packages. "And I made these for everyone also."

Dobby proudly handed her a large box. "There is enough for everyone in the family," he said. "I have more gifts to deliver. Happy Christmas!" With a snap of his fingers, he vanished with another pop.

Emma looked at the large box he had handed her. It was badly wrapped and used far too much tape.

Susan started to laugh. Dobby's spoken English had improved noticeably since Harry started coaching him, but he still had problems with his spelling. The box was labeled "to Dann and Emmma Grangur and family".

Dan shrugged. "Open it. I'm curious what he could have made."

Emma pulled the paper off to reveal a box full of socks. Forty socks, to be exact, and no two socks were the same.

"Ohhh!" exclaimed Susan, "Dobby's socks are great. He's charmed them to be warm all the time."

Emma's eyes widened and she carefully separated the socks into four piles. "Warm socks! I don't care if they don't match," she declared. If nothing else, she'd wear them to bed. The Weyr was on a flat, open plain not far from the coast, which meant they always had a stiff breeze. In the winter it added an uncomfortable chill.

Dan reached over to the pile of gifts from Harry and handed one to Susan and Hermione, then he picked up the other two, passing one to Emma. Susan found a small note inside her box which she avidly read.

Susan,

I am sorry that this past week hasn't been easy and I apologize for any difficulty it might cause with your new family. You are a wonderful person and I hope that someday soon you find the person that makes your heart sing.

I will always remember your actions with deep affection. Please know that you can call on me for anything you might need.

Your Friend,

Harry

She smiled after reading that. Harry had accepted the conditions she had put in place without a single argument.

"A love letter?" Hermione asked archly.

"Hermione!" exclaimed Emma angrily.

"Pumpkin," Dan chided disappointingly.

"Hermione," Susan said with a touch of sadness. She held out the note and Hermione took it from her. She scanned it briefly, then reread it. "Now do you believe me? Harry and I are not dating. It was a one time thing."

Hermione handed the note back to Susan, who passed it to Emma.

"I'm sorry," Hermione said softly.

"So am I, Hermione. I'm sorry this came between us, but I don't regret what I did. I am just getting used to having a sister and I would really hate for this to ruin that," Susan said.

"Well, pumpkin?" asked Dan. He was starting to see Susan as a real part of their family and he didn't like the fact that the girls were arguing. It bothered him greatly that the reason boiled down to sex, but he had come to accept the fact that the dragons were affecting the riders. Emma had spoken to Susan about that evening and she had related the details to him. Both of them were appalled by idea that the urge could be so strong that a person would injure themselves.

Hermione heaved a great sigh and she nodded. "I'm sorry, Susan. I've been unfair to you."

Dan and Emma exchanged a glance. Hermione was offering peace with Susan, but there was no mention of Harry. Both knew she blamed Harry for agreeing to sleep with Susan. They thought she was wrong, but Hermione needed to come to that decision on her own.

"How about we get to the rest of these gifts, then?" Dan said, trying to shift the mood.

Susan walked over and hugged Hermione, then she knelt by the tree and pulled out a gift and handed it to Hermione. "From Mum and Dad," she said with a grin.

---

Author's Notes and Mockeries:

- Lets start with a note of caution. This chapter signals a major break in Harry/Hermione's relationship. It doesn't signal an open invitation for you to leave a review telling me who you think Harry should be with. I don't care if you want Harry to partner with a sheep, two goats and a cigar smoking midget named Sammy.

Realistically, this isn't a love story. Harry will have a relationship, and I will promise you it will be unlike any you've ever seen in Harry Potter fan fiction. Now having said that, let's grit our teeth because the Hermione show doesn't end with just this chapter.

- DragoonZ left a review telling us that he had a SUGER rush. Sigh... that's it. He is also failing English in school I reckon and I really hope it's the fault of some other country other than mine.

- Sweetgirl23 wants to know what Hogwarts students were in the second impression. The answer to that is none. The children that were found were all too young.

- Rexnos I hope this chapter is personal enough for you. I agree that too much upper level stuff gets impersonal, but sometimes you have to deal with it when the story is this large.

- Jim Red Hawk, I sympathize. Ninety percent of the time that I get a chapter update from a story I'm enjoying, I read the last two chapters. If I published 2K chapters I could summarize in a paragraph or two, but honestly, these chapters run 30 or more pages. There's too much material to summarize. Hence my suggestion, reread the last chapter, then go onto the new one.

- What Doesn't Kill Ya, whoa.. what a name. Anyway Draco will appear now and then. He really doesn't play a major role in this tale and if I wanted to be picky I have a huge cast of characters to deal with. Giving more air time to them isn't easy. As to Ron, he'll be seen a few more times before he fades permanently into the background. I do not want to bash Ron, or the Weasleys, the simple fact is they are Wizards and unimportant to the story, or to Harry at this point.

- Umbrus-Sama wants to know how the Weyrleader selection works in this story. It's real simple. There is a Senior Weyrleader, Harry. And as new Weyrs come online, the senior dragon of that Weyr selects one rider to be the Weyrleader. Harry retains over all control because of his ability to speak to all the dragons. No one knows why Harry can speak to all dragons, Spath thinks that Harry may have an ability that he'll pass to his children and one of them may end up being Weyrleader someday.

- All of Maziang's riders are magical. Unfortunately that won't last long, their pool of available candidates is very small and there are far fewer wizards than there are muggles. Eventually magical riders will be outnumbered by normal riders.

And this chapter's recommendation is a VERY short one shot humor story that really tickled my fancy.

The Birdies by Blizdal.

StoryID: 4748852

Check it out and if you enjoyed it, tell the author so.