Chapter 12- A market and a madman
The group of students sat in the carriages and looked on in awe at the city that rose above them atop the massive stone arch. "That is Solitude, capital of Skyrim" Aralas whispered to his friends who sat next to him. Hermione was practically quivering with delight as she observed the magnificent city. It had grown in the years since the civil war. The walls had expanded with now another whole layer added to the ancient city. The docks were now a part of the city proper and a whole new district had been added.
The Carriages drew to a halt in front of the first gates at the bottom of the hill and all disembarked. They all wore the emerald green and leather robes they had been issued and their hoods were down as they enjoyed the sunshine and warmth that they had missed whilst in the ice locked college. Silandra stood in the front with her fur lined blue robes and their College chaperones in golden coloured robes stood among them. Their Terran chaperones waited in regular wizarding robes near the back of the group, though Sirius now wore a set of stylish black and silver clothes he had recently purchased for the occasion.
"Now remember, if at anytime you become separated from you groups you must find a guard in red armour with a bear shield and tell them that you are a member of the college students. They will take you to where you need to go." Silandra called to her students who nodded. It had become a well known fact that you didn't disobey the Archmage. After Weasely had disobeyed her orders and had been hung by his ankles from the top of the mages tower for five hours. They had all been forced to watch as his frostbitten toes were regrown. That disturbing sight had quickly enforced their realisation that the Archmage's word was unassailable law.
Even the Slytherins didn't dare cross her. Over the week the students had been forced out of their house groups and into their training groups, the system not allowing for them to maintain their grudges less they face the wrath of their trainers. Shana looked down at her group and held in a small smile. She had been rather concerned about her charges but they had shaped up nicely. Well, most of them had. The blond imperial had been taken under one of the older student's wing and that had done wonders for him, though far from a complete reform it was becoming better than nothing. The three who were already friends had flourished under the different teaching style.
The young girl's bushy brown hair had been wrestled into submission with a collection of braids that some of the older girls had taught her and the young boy had put on some muscle, the beginnings of a warrior's frame becoming evident under his rapidly thinning layer of baby fat. The Bosmer child was no concern and had taken to the training with glee. It was her last student that caused her to frown. Stubborn, opinionated, greedy and hostile.
Those were just a few of the words she could use to describe him. He argued constantly and didn't appear to actually learn from his mistakes. He had even had the gall to suggest that it was his groups fault that he had been punished. She sighed and tugged her adept robes, her elven gauntlets glinting in the light.
She felt naked without her heavy Dwemer plate but this was the uniform for the college. She kept her eye on her charges as she led them through the gates and into the grand market.
Draco looked around the market with wonder. It was so different from Diagon ally, but no less wondrous. Voices shouted and called to each other, trying to garner attention from the passers by. A deep maroon Argonian advertised potions and ingredients while a Khajiit called out for people to see the jewelry and baubles he had for sale. Store fronts decorated with colourful signs and open doors waited for someone to wander in.
Flags and awnings shone in multi-coloured splendor in the bright sunlight. Musicians from the Bards College played on street corners with bowls for coins set in front of them and a few tumblers and jugglers performed in an open space near the northern side of the market. The air was filled with the smell of foods, from sweet rolls to roasted meat. Drinks of every kind, from mead to chilled non alcoholic beverages and even magically frozen fruit juices that could be consumed were on offer from stalls and vendors.
This was the bi-annual Grand Market Festival of Solitude, one of the biggest markets in Skyrim, people traveled from all over the continent to sell their wares. Merchants from Hammerfell, Elsweyr, Valenwood and Highrock competed with Altmer, Dunmer and imperial merchants. It was a truly competitive and festive atmosphere, and all sponsored by the thane of Skyrim, the acknowledged richest woman in all of Tameriel. Guards from Solitude and various payed mercenaries oversaw the market providing visible security.
Thieves and assassins patrolled the crowds, protecting the shoppers from predation. All taking a break on this market day by order of their Guildmaster, making it one of the safest events in all of Tameriel. There had never been a murder at the market in all the years of its establishment, a fact that Silandra was extremely proud of. The students wandered through the crowds in their training groups along with the older college students, taking in the grandeur of the Market.
Draco found himself laughing and enjoying himself for perhaps the first time in his young life. He laughed and smiled openly, joking in a way he had never been permitted to before by his parents. Aralas had taken to dragging his group through the market, showing them the things he had seen on previous visits with Shana watching over them like a hawk. Ron glared and muttered at everyone and sniffed at the lack of visible magic, he had grown bitter to all things Nirn after they had merely laughed at his attempts to seem tough, ridiculing him for his arrogance and jealousy.
Malfoy had worked from the ground up and was actually trying to make an effort to see the world anew and as such had recived tentative acceptance by the other student. Something that made the redhead hat the Slytherin even more.
Sirius smiled as he tugged at the stem of a collection of bright yellow flowers. The stems snapped and h took his prize with him as he wove through the crowds. Silandra was standing at a stand that advertised precious gems, bartering the price for a trio of flawless sapphires she was attempting to sell to the merchant.
He snuck up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned and he produced the flower with a flourish. She took it with a raised eyebrow and a small smile tugging at her lips. "Dragon's tongue?" she asked him with a small smile as if there was a joke that he wasn't getting. Sirius blinked then grinned.
"Yes" he answered. Silandra took the flower and slid the stem into one of her braids.
"Then thank you kind sir" she replied before turning back to the merchant and picking up a pile of coins. "Would you like to walk with me?" she asked and Sirius gave a roguish grin and held out his arm.
"If you would care to accompany me milady" he replied. Silandra rolled hr eyes and placed her hand on his forearm and led him through the market.
Eventually the sun began it's decent and the market changed, stalls closed and others opened. Shop fronts glowed with light and warmth and the guards lit torches. Lanterns were lit and beautiful curtains of purple, blue, green and red drew themselves across the darkened sky. The twin moons rose high in the twilight and trillions of stars woke to dance in the heavens. The music changed as different styles were brought out to be played.
Instruments from far off lands saw use and songs sung in a multitude of different tongues and eras filled the air. Even a few Vampires dared show themselves with their wares, strange and fascinating artifacts from ages long past and ingredients gathered from dark and dangerous places. Beautiful baubles crafted by hands old enough to remember bygone eras and books of ancient knowledge sat next to beautifully, crafted fur clothes brought forth by the few Weres that had gathered the courage to come.
It had long been established that all were welcome at the market as long as the peace was kept. High queen Elisif herself made an appearance and made an effort to meet and speak with the visiting Terrans, charming many of them with her beautiful smile and kind words that remained even as she aged. The highlight of the evening was the magnificent magic display put on by Archmage Stillglade herself and a handful of the college master illusionists. Illusions of dragons and Daedra battled mages and warriors.
Stories and legends flashed like fireworks across the sky as the mistress of illusion herself took the opportunity to show off. The Terran wizards watched in awe, their jaws hanging open at the magnificent demonstration of Nirnian magic.
When the evening finished and the night market was in full swing The Terran wizards were herded up into the old city proper and given beds at the bard's college before their return to Winterhold and Earth the next day. As he snuggled into the thick furs of his bed, Draco couldn't help but wish he didn't have to return to Hogwarts.
Dawn sat with the college delegation in their carriages once more as they trotted across Skyrim. It had been an eventful night, Goyle had gotten into a fight with Weasely before bed and he now sported a black eye and a split lip. Weasely on the other hand looked like a horse had kicked him in the face, a missing tooth, swollen nose and collection of bruises marked his face. The College trainer who had seen the fight had declared it an honour duel and that Weasely had lost. Badly.
Mrs. Weasely had tried to fuss over the fuming boy but had been prevented by Shana. The Altmer's glare had silenced the red headed matron and her statement that the boy needed to learn that insulting someone's family was not permitted. Goyle had recived a sturdy hand on the shoulder from his rather pleased looking trainer. A heavily muscled Orismer with an impressive set of tusks and a white handprint on his face. Their arrival in at the college was anticlimactic.
They were to pack up and meet in the courtyard in two hours. Draco reluctantly packed up his small amount of clothes and looked around the small room he had slept in for the past week. It had been hard at first and only barely got easier as the week progressed, but he felt that something important had happened here, like a new chapter of his life had started in this little room.
As he walked down the stairs he saw the older boy who had helped him. "Hello Draco" he greeted and Draco nodded him Return. "Thank you Nelkir" he told the older teen. The dark haired young man smiled and put a hand on Draco's shoulder.
"Look after yourself Draco. Don't believe what other people tell you at face value" he urged and Draco nodded, before giving the older teen a quick hug, the first he had given since he was six, and heading down to the courtyard fro their journey home.
Dumbledore smiled to himself and idly picked an imaginary piece of lint off his florid royal purple robes. The first years were due to return from their field trip soon. The great hall was empty with the tables pulled back to give the arriving group room. A swirling sphere or purple and black light sprang into existence and a few of the waiting teachers jumped back. The students began to exit the portal in groups of five they moved out of the way and waited quietly in their pods watching the portal with serious eyes.
Some of them had small injuries like bruises or a split lip. Young Goyle appeared to be missing a tooth and the left side of his face was purple and black. Dumbledore was worried and despite the fact that the boy was grinning like he had won the lottery; he was not convinced at the boy's well fair. The parent chaperones stepped through and seamed to breath a sigh of relief but young Sirius looked a little put out. Archmage Stillglade stepped through last and the first years bowed to the woman who nodded t them, a smile lighting up her amber eyes.
She turned to Dumbledore and nodded. "I return your students to you." She told him formally and inclined her head.
Dumbledore nodded genially at her and she looked at her temporary students one last time before she vanished back through the portal to Nirn. Dumbledore turned to look at the first years and their chaperons.
"So I trust that it went well?" he asked curiously. Some of the students nodded vigorously while others shook their head. Young Weasely was particularly vocal while the others were leaving a bit of a void around the boy. Unwilling to get to near him.
"I'm glad, as you know the Halloween feast will be happening this evening. Why don't you all go to your dormitories and unpack" he commanded the students. The groups filed out, students leaving their pods to depart in the direction of their common rooms.
Draco looked at the Gryffindor trio and made a decision. He stuck out his hand firmly. Aralas cocked his head before smiling and taking the blond boy's had and shaking it firmly. They didn't speak but they didn't need to. As Draco departed for the Slytherin common room the others from his house looked at him in uncertainty.
They didn't know how to handle this new, quieter Draco. Though Crabb and Goyle had approached him, they were another two who had truly thrived in the harsher environment of Nirn, finding ways to channel their aggression and larger frames into something constructive. Draco looked at the two boys and decided that he wanted friendships like the Gryffindor trio. He wanted Shield-siblings, and maybe he could find them in Crabb and Goyle, or make a friend in Aralas.
The Halloween Feast was a bit of a culture shock to the returning first years. It was astonishing the things that they had become accustom to in Nirn. A week had been almost like a year to them and now they sat in the brightly lit hall, eating Terran food. The older years were demanding questions from the first years and many were loudly telling tales, Weasely in articular was loudly telling them about the "tortures" he had suffered while the other Gryffindor first years glared at him and corrected his stories causing the boy's ears to turn redder and redder. The field was about to draw to a close when a flash of purple drew everyone's attention. A man with shoulder length sliver hair in a purple and red doublet leapt from the portal.
Glowing yellow eyes sweeping the hall and a large grin splitting his face. "HEllllooooooooo Hogwarts!" he cried and lifted his hand. A staff with three faces materialised in his hand.
"Wabbajack!" a Ravenclaw first years cried and the first years dove to the ground, following the drill they had been given if the artifact should ever be seen.
"Wabbajack?" Dumbledore asked uncertainty, looking at the man.
"WABBAJACK!" the man confirmed and launching a flash of light at the headmaster. Dumbledore only had a moment to blink before he morphed into a snow white goat with a rather impressive beard. "Albus!" McGonagall cried drawing her wand only to vanish in a puff of light which cleared to reveal Saber toothed tiger. "Wicked!" the Weasely twins called as another flash of light hit their brother who had refused to duck.
A Mudcrab emerged from the light, squeaking angrily and snapping it's claws. Pandemonium reigned as students ran and screamed, trying to escape the laughing man. Quirrell tried to escape only to be struck in the back by a flash of light. The resulting skeever was pounced upon by the Saber cat that was Minerva who began to toy with the frantically squeaking rat. Snap drew his wand and hurled five spells at the man in quick succession.
The lights were batted aside and Snape was turned into an oversized fruit bat for his trouble. "Right QUIET!" the man bellowed and the students froze, staring at him with wide eyes. "Right, I thought I'd pop in to say… HAPPY HALLOWEEN!" he bellowed before gesturing with the staff to the various farm animals that also stood frozen. Quirrell-skeever hanging by a hind paw from McGonagall-saber cat's mouth while Snape-bat glared from where he hung on a floating jack-a-lantern.
Dumbledore-goat looked nonplussed as the grinning man turned his attention to the two Weasely twins "keep up the good work lads. Who knows, we might just be in touch soon" he said with a grin and turning to where Aralas stood in a corner of darkness.
"Hello lad! I think you might be wanting this, use it well!" he threw a small package at the Bosmer who caught it looking unsure. "Oh and, don't tell your mother lad, it's part of our youth outreach program... She won't approve" he added.
Then with a rather dainty pirouette, he vanished in swirl of purple. "Wicked" the twins chanted to each other again and Aralas looked down at the thickly wrapped package in his hand. He tugged back a corner and saw a silvery materiel wrapped around what felt like a book. He carefully tucked it into his magically expanded satchel and looked at the shell shocked students.
"Yeah… That was the Daedric prince of Madness" he told them resignedly. Any questions the remaining students may have had were precluded by a loud roar from outside the castle. Everyone's eyes widened in fear and Aralas took a running run up the wall to ward the window.
Everyone, including the teachers watched with fearful expressions. The young wood elf peaked through the thick paned glass and called down. "Hermione, what has thick, grey skin, stands at about twelve feet and carries a club? It looks kinda like a giant but way uglier" he asked. "That's a Troll Aralas!" the first year girl cried and looked around in horror. Flitwick came to the rescue. "Right, everyone remains seated and don't make much sound. I am putting the castle on lock down until we can restore the headmaster and Deputy Headmistress" He cried loudly.
A few people tried to argue but were quickly silenced when Madam Pomphrey and Professors Sprout and Sinistra backed him up. With one incantation the front doors and secret passageways to the castle sealed shut with a loud gong like crash.
The Wabbajack Victims were headed into a corner and the now bleeding and abused looking Quirrell-skeever removed from the Snarling Macgona-cat who Hagrid threw a large chunk of steak for her to gnaw on. Dumble-goat munched contentedly on a napkin he had found and Bat-Snape was given a large chunk of melon to keep him contained. Mudcrab Ron had simply been knocked onto his back by the twins and he rocked back and forth, squeaking angrily.
The tables were cleared away and the various houses chaperoned to bed by the remaining teachers. Flitwick stared at the collection of over thirty creatures that had been affected and rolled up his sleeves before reaching for a nearby bottle of Firewhisky. This might take awhile.
A/N- From the ashes of her past self, the ancient princess of troy rise. Looking about she frowned as she saw only chaos, disorder and terrible spelling. She shook her head, sad at her naiveté and prayed that her story would become better.
Hello! I live! and I survived what may have been the most gruelling several months of my geologically short life. Please forgive me for the lurch I left you in. *bows apologetically* Also I wish to fulfill a debt. I urge you to take a look at Mystborn's latest story: I Work for the Bureau of Original Characters, They are immensely proud of it but saddened that so few people seem interested in it. I know many came to see who I was after Mystborn's endorsement and I thank you for it. Now it's time to repay the favour. So if you like a laugh and maybe a pluck at the heartstrings, go check it out please.
Thank you to all those who stayed with me through this long silence, I hope that the next update will no be so long in coming.
Safe travels, Trojan Seeress.