Beneath Sovereign Skies

by Bobmin356

Harry and the dragons fight to find their place and gain acceptance amidst growing international tensions. Not all is well and good as the Weyrs threaten established powers and offer new opportunities. Follow Harry and the dragons as they try to navigate increasingly turbulent waters of international politics, terrorism and intrigue. On indefinite hiatus.

2. Chapter 2

Standard disclaimer:

Alyx paced back and forth nervously on the stage. Every so often she'd glance out at the audience and cringe as the theater slowly filled. Finally after several more minutes of pacing she sighed and turned to the audience.

"I'm afraid I have to apologize to everyone. Apparently some people didn't care much for the Incredible Who Who epic, and even worse, thought the idea of Tom Cruise starring in a musical based on the epic was outrageous," Alyx said, then she fought back a sniffle.

"Bob has threatened to take away my power tools if I continue with the idea. So, reluctantly and under protest, I am giving up on any Who who movie idea and no longer writing a sequel to the Who who epic. Instead I will open it up to fan fiction writers."

"Wait! Wait! That's not what we agreed!" Bob shouted from offstage. A moment later he emerged from the right because everyone knows that stage left is the exit side. "You never said anything about opening it up to fan fiction! Don't you know what fan fiction writers will do to your Who Who Whuinverse?"

Alyx stared at Bob in shock. "No what?" she asked tremulously.

Bob leaned in closer and looked around carefully to make sure no one was listening, then he switched on his microphone so everyone could clearly hear him.

"They will totally ruin it! They will turn Draco and Snape straight! What will happen in your Whuniverse if your characters like girls?! Just imagine, someone writes a story where Snape and Delores Umbridge fall in love and have... sex! They could hook Draco up with a Dominatrix McGonagall!"

Alyx gasped and fainted.

Bob smirked at her still form, then winked at the audience. "God I love this job," he muttered to himself.

Bob waved to a convenient, unnamed, stagehand and a small pack/herd/flock/pod of llamas were herded/shoved/pushed/stampeded onto the stage. While the stagehand was llama herding/shoving/pushing/stampeding, Bob was busy gluing strips of llama wool to the now sleeping Alyx.

Finally Bob straightened up and faced the audience. "Alyx needs a new focus to help her tell you that we don't own Harry Potter or the Dragonriders of Pern. So with the demise of her Who who I'm going to let her think she is now a victim of the incredibly rare (and just recently invented for the purposes of this disclaimer) Llamacanthropy disease."

Bob chuckled and walked off the stage as the Llamas settled in around Alyx for a nice nap.

"Enjoy the chapter folks, but be warned. Have some hankies handy!" Bob called from off stage. "I hope she doesn't think she is a llama otherwise she'll join the pack/herd/flock/pod. Then who will I have to amuse me?"

---

Beneath Sovereign Skies

Chapter 2

Life Goes On

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The Burrow, December 31st, 1996...

"You wanted to talk to us dad?"

Arthur looked up from his newspaper and smiled at his family. He had called for a meeting of everyone available so he could speak to them before their guests arrived. Placing his paper down on the table he motioned for everyone to sit. "Yes I called you here to let you know that later today we'll be having some guests visiting. I've invited Harry and his two girlfriends here for dinner."

"Here?" exclaimed Ginny in dismay. Ginny wasn't proud of how she had acted the last few times she had met up with Harry. She understood that she'd never have a relationship with Harry now, however now she'd be confronted not only with Harry, but also with the reality of his unusual relationship.

Molly clucked her tongue and shook her head. Harry had taken up with two girls and she didn't approve of that at all. Remus had spoken to her, explaining in detail what kind of relationship was involved and she knew in a way this wasn't something Harry had deliberately chose for himself. Despite the explanation she still didn't really approve of what Harry was doing.

She had considered talking to Harry when she saw him at Buckingham Palace, but they never got the chance to say more than hello before Harry was whisked away to be introduced to the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka. The one time she tried to bring up the subject with Harry, he had stepped on her hard, but the issue had been quickly forgotten in the wake of the attack on the Hogsmeade school.

It bothered Molly, but she wasn't sure it bothered her because she always hoped Harry and Ginny might get together or it bothered her on some moral grounds. She now understood the situation better, and was resolved to do something very different than anyone expected. She would hold her tongue and not bring it up.

"Yes, here," Arthur said a bit sternly. "Might I remind you that you owe your life to that young man. I invited Harry, Hermione and May here for dinner. Harry graciously accepted. Mind you, the Weyr and the Weyrleader have become internationally famous. You know that your mother and I attended a feast at Buckingham Palace on Boxing day. Harry was there and despite the good face he put on it, I could tell he hated every second of the day. He was there at the personal invitation of the Queen. Harry has attracted a lot of attention, in both worlds, but here it will be different.

"Here he will be just Harry, the same boy we've known and loved for years. And while I might wish things had gone differently for him I am happy for him because he's found a meaning to his life. Some of us go through our entire lives and never find that meaning."

Ron looked away, his father had been pointedly looking at him when he spoke. Ron had drastically improved his grades at school, but he still had little idea about what he wanted to do with his life.

"Just treat Harry like you normally would," He said to them all, and then he turned to the twins. "One of the girls accompanying Harry is a muggle which means that ordinarily she'd be defenseless against your pranks. But I'm told her dragon will protect her and she does have one of the largest dragons in the world. Both Hermione and May have dragons that are at the very top of the Emperor Horntail class. And I understand that Harry's dragon is very protective of his mate's riders; his dragon far exceeds the Emperor Horntail size limits."

Fred and George swallowed nervously and promised they would keep any demonstrations to simple stuff that was easy to fix.

Arthur smiled and nodded to them. They were truly good lads, even if they did let their enthusiasm get away from them now and then.

"Molly are you going to be alright with this?" he asked.

Molly dried her hands on a dish towel and sighed heavily. "I don't care for it, but ever since you asked Remus Lupin to explain it I understand it better. Remus said it best when he said that even if Harry had a single girlfriend, his dragon would always be part of that relationship. So it's not Harry and two girls, it's Harry, two girls and three dragons. It's six people trying to make a family," she said then she smiled softly at her family. Family was something she could understand right down to her toes. "That was another thing that Remus stressed, the dragons were a driving force behind the arrangement. He said that all three had a great deal of difficulty in the beginning. It's very different than what we're used to and I'm sure it's very different from what Harry and Hermione were were expecting for themselves. I think the only thing at this point that makes me uncomfortable at this point is this muggle girl."

Arthur nodded knowingly. He knew Molly would have problems with a muggle. She had a cousin that was a squib that she almost never talked about. To her a muggle might as well be a creature from another planet. She didn't hate muggles like some pure bloods, but they made her uncomfortable. She didn't know if she should admire them for surviving without magic or pity them. Arthur allowed her this foible only because she was being forced to confront it almost daily due to his position in the Ministry. Her attitude was being slowly eroded away with each passing day.

In a way Molly Weasley personified most of the pure-bloods of Britain, despite her husband's interests, she knew next to nothing about mundane society or it's accomplishments. His job was opening her eyes to the greater world and tearing at her conceptions of what life outside of magic was like.

"She's a very nice girl Molly. The only difference is she can't do magic," Arthur said gently. "What would you do if Charlie brought home a muggle girl?"

Molly nodded and smiled weakly. Charlie was in fact dating a squib who was a daughter of one of his fellow workers so the question was one she had already asked herself. "I know and I see what you're saying Arthur. It's just that I'm not used to mingling with muggles. Who knows, I might even like her once I get to know her."

Arthur leaned back in his chair and relaxed, Molly was his biggest worry. With Molly taken care of he turned to his youngest two children. "Well?"

Ron shrugged. "I don't have any problems seeing them. I'm not all that proud of some of the things I've done. Harry and I will probably never be best mates again, but I'm glad for the chance to see them again."

"Ginny?"

Ginny bowed her head and she wiped at her eye. "I won't cause any trouble for Harry."

Arthur leaned forward in his chair and rested an elbow on the table. "Pumpkin," he said.

"I know," she said harshly, and then her face flushed with shame. "I'm sorry, but it hurts you know?"

Arthur nodded sympathetically, "I know. I suppose I'm partially to blame for this. I read you all those stories when you were growing up."

Ginny looked up at him. "Oh no Daddy, I knew he wasn't the same boy as the one in the stories. He was even better. He killed a monster to save me! Little Ginny Weasley who couldn't even talk to him!"

Ginny sighed and wiped at her face again, then she smiled weakly and squared her shoulders. "I'm glad he's happy and glad that he's with Hermione. At least that way it's like he's still part of our family."

"That's the spirit Ginny," Fred said brightly.

"Yeah, our Harry had to find two girls to get as good as one Weasley," offered George as he poked Ginny in the shoulder.

"Probably needs three cooks too, since our Gin Gin here is nearly as good as mum," Fred added.

"And he has to deal with four cold feet instead of two!" George said. Ginny's feet were always cold and she had developed them into weapons whenever she had been tasked with waking her brothers for breakfast.

Arthur frowned, but Ginny giggled weakly. He relaxed when he saw what his sons were doing. Once again the Weasley family worked to help one of their own as the twins kidded and joked Ginny into a better mood.

"Percy?" he asked.

Percy smiled at his father and shook his head. The young man had undergone an ordeal that few had survived. It changed him greatly. Percy was much more considerate and personable these days than he used to be. "I don't have a problem with it father," he said softly. "The Weyr protected our family when those terrorists attacked the school, and they also protected Penelope who was at the school with her mentor that day. I can't say anything against that. I just wish Charlie could see it the way we do."

Arthur nodded, his son Charlie was a former dragon handler who still refused to acknowledge that dragons were intelligent despite the evidence. It was something that severely strained his relationship with his own family.

Molly smiled softly at Percy. She was so proud of him. And now that he had announced his engagement to Penelope she was tickled pink. Percy would be her first son to settle down and get married. She approved of Penelope who was a sweet girl that was studying to become a teacher. Her goal was to become a new type of teacher, introducing simple magic to pre-Hogwarts students as part of a Magical History and Techniques class. It was a new idea to the British wizards, but it was common around the world where most countries started their children casting magic as early as nine years old.

Arthur leaned back and looked at his family. Molly returned his smile and reached for his hand causing him to relax even further. He had been very worried about Harry coming here for dinner. He truly cared for the lad and considered him more like a son than an honorary Weasley or close family friend. Although no one knew it, after first year he had sounded Albus out about taking Harry into his home, but Albus had told him it was necessary for Harry to return to his family each year.

Satisfied that his family would behave, he went to pick up his paper and finish enjoying his tea. The rest of the family wandered off and Molly put the wireless on to a music station.

Arthur's hand snaked around the paper reaching and Molly quickly placed a plate of cookies within his reach. He grabbed a cookie and smiled to himself. Molly could be opinionated and obstinate, but she really was a gentle person deep down.

A few minutes later the sound of wings flapping drew his attention away from an article concerning a broom recall. Standing he peered out a window and smiled broadly. "Our guests have arrived, shall we go greet them?" he said to Molly.

Molly nodded a bit apprehensively. She knew dragons wouldn't hurt her, but that wasn't how she was raised. It was hard to put aside a fear she had grown up with. She put a shawl on and followed Arthur out the back door.

Molly edged a little closer to Arthur while Harry stood under Comaloth. Hermione reached into a silver colored thermal bag that she carried and extracted a bundle of flowers which she floated down to Harry, and then she turned in her seat and slithered down the side of her dragon.

Harry watched in amusement for a moment, then he glanced over to see May was also enjoying Hermione's effort to avoid falling. She had managed to put her fear of flying behind her, but nothing would take away her fear of falling. Hermione wasn't the only rider to resort to using a short knotted rope to help lower herself to the ground. Some of the Horntails stood fifteen feet tall at the shoulders, and Chekiath stood nearly seventeen feet tall.

All of the dragons lowered themselves so their riders could easily mount and dismount, but Hermione and a few others used a rope to steady their dismount. Even with the rope, and the dragons helping their riders, the distance to the ground still intimidated some of the riders.

Harry waited until Hermione was down, then he turned and smiled at the Weasleys. He stepped up to Molly and handed her the flowers and kissed her on the cheek.

"Hello Mrs Weasley, we brought you these," he said softly.

"Oh my goodness! Orchids, you remembered!" she exclaimed happily.

"Where did you get orchids at this time of year?" asked Arthur.

"Of course I remembered Mrs. Weasley. I remember de-gnoming your garden with Ron and while you grew mostly vegetables, you had one section reserved for roses and orchids. Ron told me how much effort you had to go through to make orchids grow in English weather and soil. As to where, these are courtesy of Nevado del Huila Weyr in Columbia, South America. I asked the dragons to look for the flowers and we picked them just before we came," Harry said.

May chuckled, "I tried to get them to go to a florist shop, but they insisted on doing it themselves."

"Well however you did it, thank you," Molly said, deeply moved by the gesture. No one had ever gone to another country before just to get her some flowers. "They are beautiful."

Arthur shook his head, and then he looked over Harry's shoulder to Chekiath. "Welcome to the Burrow Chekiath, I'm sorry but I don't remember the names of your consorts."

Cheki turned and eyed the man, his amusement was clearly showing in his eyes. "Comaloth and Trath are my mated consorts holder Weasley, and we thank you for your welcome. I spotted a small lake nearby if you don't mind, we'll wait for our riders there."

The dragons were still struggling with names for people, but Harry had described the Burrow to Cheki who decided that Arthur fit into the category of Holder. The title of holder was apt as a land owner, and good enough for this situation. Harry was grateful he had managed to convince the dragons to use a formal title like Sir or Ma'am for most meetings if they didn't know their name. In Arthur's case, Harry told Chekiath that it was acceptable to call him by his title and last name.

Pern had a rigid class system that allowed for very structured names and or titles. Unfortunately modern society had far too many occupations and titles which had no Pern equivalent.

Arthur blinked in surprise. "But the lake is frozen over!" he protested.

"They recently discovered a muggle sport that they greatly enjoy," Hermione replied. "Of course they can't wear real ice skates, but they enjoy sliding along the ice anyway. And the cold doesn't bother them like it does humans."

Harry eyed his dragon and shook his head. He suspected that while he sat down for dinner with the Weasleys, his dragon would have two back to back shagging flights. He sighed and knew that he'd just have to endure it. While no rider exhibited the mating frenzy after their first shagging flight, all of the riders were still affected by their dragons.

May leaned into him and smiled impishly. "You know they aren't just going skating don't you."

He nodded and replied quietly, "Yeah Cheki's just doing it because he thinks it's funny."

The Weasleys were busy questioning Hermione about the dragons and not paying attention to the pair.

She hugged his arm tightly. "Don't worry about it, we'll deal with it later," she murmured.

Harry nodded and he stepped a bit closer to Hermione. Molly looked at the three and suddenly realized they were standing out in her backyard in a half a foot of snow. "Goodness!" she exclaimed, "let's get out of this cold. Come along now, I have some hot cocoa waiting and dinner will be ready soon. Everyone is just so excited to have you visit."

May paused in her stride and really looked at the Burrow. "How does that stay up?" she whispered to herself. The building had a decided lean to it, and looked like it had been patched many times over it's history. It may have appeared to be unstable, but it was clearly well maintained by the Weasley family.

"Magic," Harry replied gently from behind her. "It's a magical place powered by a loving family."

He placed a hand on her shoulder and gently nudged her towards the open door and its welcoming warmth. She smiled over her shoulder at him and followed Hermione into the house that looked like it was ready to fly apart any minute.

Harry paused at the threshold of the door and turned to look out over the yard with a wistful smile. The garden extended towards a small grove of apple trees in one direction and an open field in another.

"Harry?" asked Arthur worriedly.

Harry turned and shrugged. "I used to think this was a perfect place to grow up. So different from Privet drive and my cupboard." he admitted. "Sometimes I was so jealous of Ron for what he had, you can't put a price on family. My time here was some of the best times I ever had before I met Cheki."

He paused and took a deep breath of the crisp winter air. "It's still perfect. I envy that," he said with a wistful smile.

Arthur returned the smile. "Well you'll always be welcome here. And you'll always be just Harry here."

Arthur motioned for Harry to enter, and then he followed him inside.

Harry looked surprised to see Ron, Ginny, Fred, George and Percy looking at him with shocked expressions. They obviously heard his comment. Harry smiled weakly and absently scuffed a foot on the floor. He hadn't expected others to hear him.

Ginny broke the ice by stepping forward and giving Harry a hug. "I expect that someday the Weasley grandkids will be playing with their Potter cousins here at the Burrow. Happy New Year Harry, it's good to see you again."

She quickly let go of him and repeated the hug with Hermione before turning to May. "I'm Ginny Weasley. I'm the smart, good looking, Weasley," she proclaimed with an impish smile.

"Oi now!" yelped Fred. "I'm the good looking one!"

"No! You're the evil twin, I'm the good twin," George told him.

"Good or evil, you're both insane," Ginny added.

May looked a little bewildered and Harry stepped next to her. He pointed to the twins with a finger. "This is Fred and George. Even they don't know which one is really which. Do not eat or drink anything they offer you," he said to May, then he turned to the twins. "May's bond mate is a sixty eight foot long, twelve ton dragon who would be very unhappy if you turn her rider into a canary. I have personally seen her dragon swallow a six hundred pound pig whole."

The twins paled and looked at May a bit fearfully.

"That's not true Harry, I did chew it a bit," Trath announced to everyone's surprise. Hermione and Harry started to chuckle.

"Harry," May chided. "I'm sure they'll behave. Lee warned me about them."

"And we'll protect you if need be. I know a new hex I've been itching to try out," Hermione added, eyeing the pair evilly.

The twins looked at Hermione for a moment, and then turned to Harry. "What have you done with Hermione?" cried George.

Ron doubled over with laughter and Hermione stared at the twins, her arms crossed and one foot tapping in annoyance.

"Yes can you do the same to Percy?" asked Fred teasingly.

"Hey now!" exclaimed Percy.

"What are you talking about?" demanded Hermione, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Harry stepped over to Hermione and wrapped an arm around her from behind. She tried to look at him and saw he was trying hard not to laugh. "Why are you laughing?" she demanded to know.

Ron straightened up and grinned at Harry. "I don't know how you did it mate, but she's human now."

Hermione's eyes narrowed and she looked at Ron who took a step back. "Hermione," he said with a bit of a whine, "you would have never threatened anyone when you were at school. You were too interested in observing the rules."

"He's right," Harry said softly, "but if you ask me, this Hermione is an improvement over something that was very good to start with."

Hermione's expression cycled through several emotions, pleasure and embarrassment over Harry's compliment mostly. She relaxed and leaned back against him more. "I can't take credit for it," Harry said. "I think her dragon wanted her to have more fun."

"She does have fun now that she has you Harry," Comaloth added.

Hermione blushed and looked down at the floor.

"We're only teasing you," Harry whispered. She looked up and smiled.

"Just remember I know more spells than you do," she said with a smile.

"Alright you lot, let's get the table set. The roast is just about ready," Molly proclaimed with a smile at their antics.

Arthur nodded, he was relieved that this was going better than he expected. He sat in his favorite chair as everyone scattered to do Molly's bidding and felt content. He wanted Harry to consider this place a home and it was clear he did.

As the group left the room he noted May standing uncertainly near the fireplace.

"May, please sit and relax, dinner will be ready shortly," he said in a kindly tone.

May sat and looked around the room, her eyes widened when she saw an animated painting.

"I know this seems very strange to you May," Arthur said, "but when you consider it, your world seems very strange to us as well. I've taken classes about the mundane world and I still don't understand most of it."

May smiled softly and nodded. "Its amazing how there can be two worlds living side by side and still be so ignorant of each other."

Arthur chuckled in reply. "Can I ask you a question?"

May blinked in surprise and nodded warily. "I suppose."

"Is Harry happy? Molly and I have worried about him since he first stepped foot in our home years ago. I even tried to talk Albus into letting us foster him after I met him, but Albus said that wasn't possible."

"I never knew that!" Harry exclaimed from the doorway. He held a pile of dishes in his hands.

Arthur grimaced slightly and turned to Harry. "I didn't tell you because nothing came of it. It was clear that something wasn't right at home for you lad. Even back then Molly and I saw it."

Harry's eyes glistened and he nodded silently. May stood and took the plates from his hands. "This is what Hermione and I have been telling you sweetheart. Its only you that feels you're not good enough for people to love."

She kissed his cheek and passed by him into the kitchen area leaving Arthur and Harry alone.

Arthur grinned widely. "Well that answers my question and puts my mind at ease. I do want you to know one thing Harry. No matter where you go, no matter where your extraordinary life takes you. The Burrow is and always will be your home too. You'll have family here."

Arthur stood and walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Now, let's go see what magic Molly has performed in her kitchen."

Campbeltown Weyr, January 20th, 1997...

Reginald Smithers trudged through the light snow, his feet making a crunching sound that was nearly lost in the noise created by the frigid wind that whipped past him. He sniffled miserably in the cold night air and wished he had followed his father's footsteps and took up potion making instead of opting for a job in the Ministry of Magic.

Reginald was not an auror despite working for the DMLE. Nothing so exciting for the short wizard with a permanent frightened expression. No, he was more important than a mere auror in his opinion. Reginald was the Ministry's only Ward breaker remaining from the old ministry.

He was sick the day the Ministry warding team attacked the Tuscany townhouse in London. In a single explosion his entire department had been wiped out and what remained was absorbed into the DMLE. In a single stroke he became the department's senior ward and curse breaker.

Now he had an utterly miserable assignment that came from the office of the Minister himself. He was supposed to perform an analysis on the wards surrounding the Weyr at Campbeltown and he was to do it covertly.

He had done few covert ward analysis jobs in the past, mostly sticking to breaking or designing wards. So he had only a little experience in covert work.

Reginald topped the small rise and stopped. The Weyr was ahead, just a half a kilometer away. It was impossible to miss as the Weyr was well lit despite the late hour. Even at this hour it was possible to see a land rover cruising along the fence line. It was obvious to Reginald that it was some kind of muggle patrol because no self respecting wizard would be inside one of those muggle contraptions.

Pulling his invisibility cloak tighter around him he increased his pace. He wanted to get this done with and get home where his warm bed waited for him.

With only his feet making any noise he crept towards the fence line. He stopped about a hundred meters away and carefully looked around before removing his invisibility cloak. The cloak would interfere with his analysis spells and wand movements. From his position he could clearly see the fence surrounding the Weyr and the lit roadway that followed the edge of the fence line. He was back far enough that he was certain that the patrol wouldn't see him. He didn't want to approach too closely or he might trigger the wards he intended to analyze.

"All right Reg, let's get this done so we can go home," he muttered to himself.

"And just what is it that you intend to do?" asked a voice.

Reginald turned slowly around. Behind him in the snow stood a dragon with a rider on it's back. The rider held his crossbow in her hand. Reginald panicked and fumbled for his wand, then the rider fired her crossbow. Reginald had barely started to spin into his apparate when he was hit by the stunning bolt and he collapsed to the ground.

Cary Cayouette leaned back and relaxed slightly. "What do you suppose that was all about sweetie?"

Heeth moved closer to the unconscious man and nudged him with her snout. "I don't know Cary, but he was up to no good."

Cary nodded. She was a witch from the second impression, a former student of Madam Merlinas school for young Witches and the substitute Wing second for Wing four. "He's a wizard," she mused aloud.

"And he has an ugly wand," Heeth hissed angrily.

Cary blinked and her eyes hardened. She wasn't a powerful witch like some of the others in the Weyr, but she had enough power for this. She pulled her wand from her holster. The wizard carried at least one wand that used a dragon heart string.

"Accio wands!" she snapped. A student of Remus Lupin and his defense class, she knew she should summon more than one wand.

Two wands flew from the wizard, tearing through his clothing. They landed in her hand and she shivered in revulsion. Quickly she tossed them off to one side. "Burn them both sweetie," she said.

"With pleasure," Heeth said with a low growl.

Heeth turned her head and flamed the area where the wands fell. Harry had a standing order that any unattended heart string wands they come across were be destroyed and Cary was happy to follow that order. After all the wands were laying in the snow and were clearly unattended.

Cary watched the smoking ground for a moment, then she turned her attention back to the unconscious man. She knew that it was probable that the security patrol saw the fire, but she wanted to be thorough. "Sweetie, contact Soranth and let him know we've captured a wizard trying to sneak up on the fence line. Let Lee know we're on the south side, near fence post fourteen."

Lee was not only her Wing leader, but he was the senior rider for tonight's late watch patrol.

With the Weyr being so large, certain fence posts that supported the fence surrounding the Weyr were marked so that a rider could provide an approximate location.

"Soranth says he and Lee will be right there, he's calling Weyr security right now," replied Heeth. In the distance Cary could hear the sound of one of the security vehicles as it turned on its siren and raced back towards her spot.

Cary shivered slightly and then she lifted her leg over Heeth's large neck and slid down to the frozen ground. Her feet crunched through the light coating of snow as she approached the man on the ground. She twirled her wand and muttered under her breath. Ropes flew from her wand tip, securing the man tightly. She had removed his wands, but there was no telling what else he had hidden on him.

A land rover screeched to a halt just opposite her on the other side of the fence and she could see the driver talking on his radio, giving directions to someone else. Not far away she could make out the headlights of a land rover slewing in the snow as it approached her from the nearest gate.

Soranth and two other dragons from late watch landed about fifty feet away and walked up to her position. She was grateful for the distance, the dragons kicked up a lot of debris when landing and she was cold enough as it was without adding the bitter cold of Between to the mix.

Lee walked over to where she stood and looked down at the man. After a moments silence he looked up, the security vehicle was closer now. "We'll turn him over to security," he said, then he smiled at Cary. "Good catch Cary. Did you disarm him?"

"Heeth said he had a heart string wand, when I summoned his wands, I got two wands. I let Heeth burn them both since they were unattended," she replied with a smirk, then she pointed to an area nearby that was still smoking.

Lee looked at the smoking ground and nodded. "Good. We don't need that filth in our Weyr," he said with a grin. "Serves him right for letting his wands lay on the ground like that."

The land rover came to a halt and Sergeant Nichols stepped out with two others. Lee walked over to them and spoke quietly with Nichols for a minute, then one of the men walked over to where Cary stood. "Miss? Can you remove the ropes please? I'd like to put him in restraints," said the man. He held up a pair of handcuffs for Cary to see.

She nodded and waved her wand at her captive, banishing the ropes.

The soldier nodded his thanks and walked over to the unconscious wizard. With a grunt he flipped the man over onto his stomach and cuffed him. The other soldiers approached him and helped carry the wizard back to the land rover where they shoved him into the back seat.

Lee walked over to Cary. "Are you able to continue your patrol?" he asked.

Cary nodded. "Heeth and I are fine," she replied.

"All right, but when you come off watch expect that people will want to talk to you," Lee warned.

She nodded and turned back towards Heeth. A quick glance at her watch caused her to sigh. Four am, she thought, only two more hours and we'll be able to get warm again.

She settled into position and cast a warming charm on herself, then she signaled to Heeth. The pair leapt skyward. As she rose in the air she could see the land rover heading back to the gate and ultimately the security office.

"What do you think Heeth?" she asked finally.

"I don't know Cary, he wasn't coming to hurt us, but he wasn't coming as a friend either," replied her dragon.

Office of the Minister, Ministry of Magic...

Sir William O'Hearny turned in his chair when his computer signaled the arrival of a priority message from the Prime Minister's office. Ordinarily he didn't get much email as a rule, most of it being routed to his secretary before arriving at his desk, but there were a few people that had a direct line to his in-box.

He double clicked the line and the message opened. As he read his eyes grew wider and wider. "Alejandro?" he said in a strangled voice.

Croaker looked up from the report he was reading. "Sir William?"

"Would you care to explain why the Ministry's only remaining ward breaker is now in Army Intelligence custody? The Weyr was going to turn him over to DMLE until they found his ministry ID badge on him. He was apparently caught approaching the Weyr this morning at four in the morning."

Croaker sighed and shook his head. "I'm sorry sir, but the Weyr changed it's warding scheme and I wanted to know what they had done. I sent Smithers to perform a covert ward analysis. I'll send someone from DMLE to get Smithers."

Sir William glanced over at Arthur who was staring at Croaker with a look of astonishment, then he turned his attention back towards Croaker.

"You'll do no such thing," Sir William said frostily. Sir William sighed and leaned back in his chair, then he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alejandro, while your curiosity is admirable, it is sadly misplaced. The Weyr has every right to use whatever warding scheme it selects and we do not have a right to analyze it without a court order. Am I right Arthur?"

Sir William turned to pin Arthur with his gaze. The elder Weasley nodded, he was surprised by how intimidating Sir William could be even without any magic. "Yes sir, that is correct. The Weyr isn't under any form of investigation that I'm aware of and I haven't heard of any court writs regarding it."

The regular courts had created a special magical branch where the justices and personnel were briefed on Magic. After the fall of the Ministry to the rightful government, they took over what had been formerly one of the jobs of the Wizengamot.

The old Wizengamot had been disbanded by order of the Queen and the Department of Revision was putting together a case to present to her Majesty that would see a much reduced form of the Wizengamot put into place. It made sense to create a legislative body much like the House of Commons in Parliament, only this time there would be strict rules under which the new body could operate.

Sir William stood. "I will go to the Weyr today to apologize on behalf of the Ministry for Magic. I will ask that Mister Smithers be released into my custody pending a formal Ministry investigation. But I also expect that you will draft an apology to the Weyr as well Mr. Croaker. The quicker we can resolve this the better chance it can be forgotten because if the Queen hears of this, we'll all be in line for the chopping block. Her Majesty is a very firm believer in the rule of law and following proper procedures."

Croaker paled and nodded vigorously. This was one of those unique cases where minor language differences resulted in unexpected results. Sir William's reference to the chopping block meant getting fired, Alejandro on the other hand took it more literally.

Sir William walked from the room, his anger plainly visible to all. Once he was gone and the door swung shut Arthur turned to Croaker. "Alejandro why? What could you possibly gain by examining the Weyr's wards?"

Croaker shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "I wanted to know what they put in place. When they shunted us to their security office I realized we had no information on their wards."

Arthur frowned. "We have no right to know what they have unless they ask us to get involved or if they are subject to an ongoing criminal investigation. It's a slippery slope you've put yourself upon Alejandro. Where will it stop? I know Buckingham Palace is heavily warded, so is #10 Downing and Parliament. Where will you draw the line? Now you tasked Smithers, our only certified ward breaker, with a job that didn't have proper authorization. He stands to lose his job unless you step in and tell the review board that he was acting on your orders."

Croaker tried to glare at Arthur, but the elder Weasley held his ground. Croaker knew Weasley was right, but he didn't need Weasley to remind him of that. He abruptly stood and walked out of the office.

Arthur sighed and shook his head in dismay. He could only hope Croaker would do what was right because this sort of incident could seriously hurt the relationship between the Ministry and the Weyr.

Campbeltown Weyr, January 21st 1997...

Harry placed the phone back on the hook then he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. The door to his office opened and he tried hard to ignore it.

"Tough day?" Hermione asked worriedly.

"You have no idea," he mumbled in reply. He opened his eyes and saw Hermione leaning against his desk, close enough to touch. He absently reached out and caressed her leg.

Hermione moved slightly to give him a bit better access to her leg. "Why don't you tell me?" she asked. His gentle touch gave her chills, it wasn't meant to be a sexual touch, but she couldn't help feeling it was. She understood that Harry had a craving for touch that he could only really indulge in when they were in private. He had had so little in the way of tactile contact while growing up that when he realized that the girls wanted him to touch them, he did; as often as he could.

"That guy Smithers, really did work for the Ministry of Magic. He thought he was working from approved orders and was sent here by Croaker to do a ward analysis of the Weyr. Only thing is, he didn't have approved orders. That kind of thing requires a court order these days. And you know the courts aren't about to provide that kind of order without a valid reason.

"Sir William was here asking for Smithers to be released to him while the Ministry conducted an investigation. I was about to send him on his way when the Prime Minister called and asked me to release Smithers as a personal favor."

Hermione frowned. "Oh? Why would he get involved?"

Harry's brow furrowed and he looked up at her. "I'm not really sure, but I can tell you what I think."

She motioned for him to continue.

He rubbed his temple for a moment, then he spoke. "I think, and mind you this is only a guess. But I believe that everyone wants this to go away as quietly as possible. If the Queen finds out people will lose their jobs. If the magical press found out it would be a big black mark against Sir William. The Ministry for Magic is finally finding its feet and this could disrupt that."

"So they want to cover this up?" Hermione exclaimed.

"No, the Prime Minister promised me they would investigate and fix things so this can't happen again," he replied. He leaned forward in his chair and looked down at the desk to hide his smirk. "Besides it wasn't entirely one sided. I mentioned the Weyr's intention to produce passports for our dragons and maybe a few years down the road to issue passports to our riders as well. Prime Minister Major is a smart man, he knew that I wasn't just bringing it up for no good reason. It was the price of my cooperation."

Hermione shook her head in amazement and considered just how much Harry had changed since he impressed. The Weyr would issue dragon passports and Her Majesty's government would not contest the issue. She was very surprised that Harry essentially blackmailed the government into letting the Weyr produce their own passports.

Harry paused and his brow furrowed. "There's something else strange going on. Have you noticed that there is an election coming up, but the only man that seems to be running is Mr. Blair? I like him well enough, but it strikes me as odd that the Prime Minister isn't doing more for his campaign or his party."

Hermione shook her head and grinned ruefully. "I hate to admit this but I haven't been paying that much to the election politics. Mostly I've been studying and reading books that Maggie has been loaning me. I wasn't sure about it at first, but it's really fascinating. I'm sorry I doubted you when you offered me this."

Harry returned her grin. Her comment about not paying attention to the politics didn't surprise him one bit. Like so many others Hermione was slipping into their new roles within the Weyr and that meant re-ordering their priorities. He reached out and caressed her leg again. "Have I told you just how proud I am of you?" he asked gently.

She blinked in shock and shivered slightly at his touch. "What?" she stammered in surprise.

"Hermione, you once pointed out just how hard and strong we're all growing up. Remember?"

She nodded uncertainly.

"You were one of the riders who had the hardest time of it," he said softly. "You came from a loving home with loving parents. Impressing Comaloth completely threw your plans for your future out the window. For more than a year after you impressed you tried very hard to rearrange those plans to fit Comaloth and the Weyr in."

She looked at him in surprise and he chuckled. "Oh please, I know you very well by now sweetheart. I may have to use my notebook to remember everything I have to do, or want to do, but you have that same list in your head. And I'll bet you a back rub you had everything planned out, step fifteen, enter university, step sixteen, graduate with honors," he said teasingly. Hermione flushed slightly but didn't deny it. "All that changed when you impressed Comaloth. I have no doubt that you still have that list, but the heading at the top of the list has changed from 'Hermione Granger, smartest witch' to 'Hermione Granger, dragon rider'.

"That's what you've become. A dragon rider in every sense of the word. I have no doubt in my mind that you will be as valuable to the Weyr as May will be. I'm proud of what you've managed to do. It wasn't easy for you and it wasn't always a joyful experience. I am proud of you just like I'm proud of May. My girls are the very best in the Weyr, in the future, when people say dragon riders, it will be people like you and May or Ronan and Karen that come to their mind."

Hermione smiled and a single tear slid down her cheek. "You always manage to surprise me Harry Potter," she said softly. "Just when I think I know how you'll react to something you surprise me," she said.

Harry stood and embraced her, holding onto her tightly. For Hermione this was a major point in her relationship with Harry. She knew who she was now, a dragon rider, and mate to the Weyrleader. It was something she would fight to keep. Harry loved her and May equally and that was all that mattered.

Campbeltown Weyr, February 28th, 1997...

"Harry!"

Harry bolted upright in his bed and he looked around in confusion. May and Hermione lay sleeping in the bed next to him. He had been certain that someone had shouted his name, but now he wasn't sure, it almost sounded like his own voice. Maybe he had dreamed it?

"Harry, not now," May murmured sleepily. "You'll wake Hermione and her flying monkeys. No, don't set the straw man on fire!"

Harry stared incredulously at May for a moment and made a note to hide her copy of the Wizard of Oz. He turned away from May and his feeling of foreboding increased again. Something was wrong, but he didn't know what.

Frowning, he carefully climbed over May to get out of the bed. Once he was out of the bed he slipped on his robe and slippers and walked out of the room. A quick look at the dragon stall showed all three dragons sleeping peacefully in their beds.

Comaloth and Trath had contributed eggs to the last hatching and would continue to do so once per year until they were unable to lay eggs. It was a decision that the three dragons had made among themselves and announced to their riders. It surprised no one that the dragons were reducing their egg output, reflecting Harry's desire to keep the Weyr population down to around five hundred bonded and five hundred non-bonded dragons.

The two females weren't sure if they would both lay for the same hatching or for alternate ones. But this year they opted to skip the February hatching. Personally he was glad they made that decision for themselves and didn't involve their riders, that would have been a difficult conversation for sure.

He shook his head and thought for a moment, trying to recall the roster for today. "Norboth? Is everything alright?" he sent to the chief watch dragon.

"Weyrleader? Everything is fine at the moment. Is there a problem?" she replied worriedly.

"I'm not sure," he said uneasily. "That's why I asked you."

"Everything is fine here Weyrleader. Abbey wants to know if there is a problem and should she wake the ready wing?"

"No, not yet."

"Weyrleader," suddenly a voice called, interrupting his conversation with Abbey Rhode's dragon.

"Polenth?" he replied. His anxiety cranked up a few more notches, for Polenth to be contacting him at this hour there had to be a major problem. He really hoped it wasn't another wizard attack on Gringotts. They had been prepared for the last one, but a surprise attack right now would be a disaster.

"Weyrleader, the Lord Holder of the Goblins has just informed me that the wards on Nevado del Huila are triggering. The Lord Holder says this is imminent eruption warning."

"Shit!" Harry said aloud, and then he grimaced and glanced at the door to the bedroom. Both girls would have taken him to task for cursing like that if they had been awake.

"Norboth, tell Abbey to wake the Weyr, we have an emergency," he said aloud.

"Yes Weyrleader."

"Polenth, thank you for your warning. Please pass along our thanks to Lord Ragnok as well," Harry sent as he rushed back into the bedroom and threw on the lights. Both girls complained about the light, then fell silent as a siren sounded across the Weyr. In the distance they could hear the bellowing of the ready wing as they scrambled to assemble out on the tarmac.

"Mayleth?" he sent, trying to contact the senior dragon at Nevado del Huila. He received a brief impression of total chaos, a veritable cacophony of jumbled images and an overwhelming fear in reply. Harry shook free from the connection and quickly scooped up some clothes.

Harry ignored both the girls who were demanding answers as he struggled to get dressed and work out in his mind what they needed to do. The goblins had told him that the wards could trigger as much as two weeks early, but they suggested treating it as an emergency. The connection he had with Mayleth suggested it was a lot worse than anyone expected.

"Harry, what's going on?" asked Hermione, finally breaking through his concentration.

Harry glanced up to see her sitting in bed staring at him. A sleep tousled Hermione was an adorable sight in his book even if she didn't agree with him. "I woke up feeling uneasy, like I knew something was wrong and I couldn't shake the feeling," he explained. "I was just checking in with the watch dragon when Polenth called to say the volcano wards at Nevado del Huila were triggering. I think it's a lot worse than that, I tried talking to Mayleth but I couldn't reach him properly."

Light flooded into the bedroom from the windows as someone threw on the high powered lights in front of the hangars so the wings could assemble. Around the Weyr riders tumbled out of their beds and rushed to dress.

Nevado del Huila Weyr #29, Columbia, South America...

Barely ten minutes had passed from the time Harry received the warning until they arrived above the threatened Weyr. Even with their renewed intelligence the dragons below him were in a panic. Harry suddenly realized that the neat, orderly evacuation he had in mind was not going to work.

Maylith, the senior dragon was bellowing in fear as nearly non-stop earthquakes shook the ground with a terrible violence. The nearby mountain had a towering column of smoke extending many miles into the sky. The sky was quickly darkening and ash and small pellets of pumice rained down on everyone.

Harry scowled instinctively ducked, he knew he shouldn't land his wings or his own dragons might also panic. Dragons tended to expect the ground to be firm beneath their feet and complained very loudly about any problems that involved the ground or their perception of that firmness. Something as simple vertigo could drive some dragons into near incoherence.

The bonded dragons fared better than their non-bonded brethren, but they still had problems with the ground moving. It also explained their distinct unease if they landed on board a ship. Ground isn't meant to move in their opinion.

"Riders button up your clothing tightly," he muttered, then he pulled his goggles down over his eyes. The dragon wings were far tougher than human skin and could withstand the ash fall longer, but Harry knew they couldn't stay too long. So far it was mostly ash and the occasional lightweight pumice; but that wouldn't last and when the heavier stuff started falling, it would be hot enough to melt lead or knock a dragon from the sky.

Considering the state of the dragons below Harry knew he would have to take drastic measures.

"Dragons!" Harry roared mentally. His voice ripped across the planet rousing whole Weyrs from their slumber. "Dragons of Nevado del Huila! Take wing, in the air you will not feel the earth move under your feet!"

Slowly, as if unable to disobey his commands, the dragons of Nevado del Huila rose into the air and calmed. Maylith rose up to a position near Chekiath who barked a sharp growl at him. The large dragon looked away, it was a rebuke from the Weyrleader's dragon and everyone knew it.

"Easy Cheki, Maylith experienced the same thing as all of his Weyr," Harry murmured, then he turned his attention to Maylith. "This place is no longer safe for your clan. We must leave this place. Justh at Romeral Weyr will welcome you as you once welcomed him."

"Weyrleader, what about our eggs?" asked Maylith.

Harry gasped and quickly scanned the ground below him. It didn't take long for him to spot the Weyr hatching grounds and the eggs resting there. "Damnation," he swore. As an unmanned Weyr, these dragons had only a few eggs a year, hatched on their own grounds like they had been doing for centuries. More than thirty eggs sat in their hatching area fully exposed.

He was about to organize a party to recover the eggs for a straight flight to Romal Weyr when things were taken out of his hands. The ground stopped trembling and there was a moment of eerie silence. Then the silence was broken with a mighty roar as the volcano only a few miles distant belched steam and smoke skyward. All of the dragons tumbled in the air for a moment from the pressure wave.

Harry heard a scream and he looked around quickly, then he spotted Karen Khan and her Neruth tumbling in the air. A rock the size of a small car flew past her, just narrowly missing. Neruth managed to straighten herself out midair, but not before Karen had been totally dislodged from her seat. Only her harness prevented Karen from being thrown totally off her dragon, as it was, she had to scramble back into position, then she frantically checked her harness for damage.

Harry knew there was no time to waste. Without consideration to himself or Chekiath he nudged the large dragon into a dive. "Everyone except wings one and two evacuate to Romeral. One and two, follow me!" he snapped.

Both wings followed their leader and quickly spotted their goal. There was a huge pyroclastic cloud sliding down the mountain side in the direction of the Weyr and he wasn't planning on sticking around for it to arrive. Chekiath swooped low over the nesting ground and snatched up an egg, then he jumped Between. Less than a minute later the air over the former Weyr was empty. And four minutes after that a searing cloud of ash and poisonous gases swept over the Weyr obliterating everything in its path.

Harry would later learn that this eruption was only minor compared to the one that followed four days later and nearly blew out half the mountainside.

Nevado del Huila was gone, wiped out and it would be years before the dragons could return to their old Weyr.

Harry decided it would be best to fold the two Weyrs into one. Romeral absorbed Nevado del Huila and Harry set Justh and Maylith both as senior dragon. Maylith accepted the role but insisted that Justh should hold the greater authority since Romeral was his Weyr. Condron and Maziang Weyr both showed up at Romeral shortly after Harry did and with their help, they were able to expand the Weyr to comfortably fit both sets of dragons.

To Campbeltown's intense dismay, less than half of the rescued eggs would survive to hatching. Harry and the others believed a trip Between could harm an egg, but now they had proof of that. It had been a desperate measure to save the eggs and to everyone's grief, it had cost them dearly.

Dragon Infirmary, Hangar seven, Campbeltown Weyr, May 20th 1997...

Harry ran a shaky hand through his hair and he paced back and forth in front of the open hangar doors. Chekiath crooned softly trying to calm him but it wasn't easy for either of them. Hermione pushed her way past Ronan who stood nearby looking unhappy and a bit bewildered. She stepped up to Harry and wrapped him in a tight hug.

The entire compliment of dragons from Campbeltown was arrayed in wing formations, and behind them, thousands of non-bonded dragons waited. Every few minutes more dragons appeared overhead and joined their fellow dragons in their vigil. The dragons had been arriving in ones and twos for the last twenty hours.

Harry stiffened in Hermione's embrace for a moment, and then he wrapped his arms around her, drawing what comfort he could from her support and love.

"Have faith in May love," Hermione said in a voice choked with emotion.

"I do," he replied in a whisper, "but there are some fights that can't be won."

She tightened her grip around him and he did the same. For now all they could do is wait.

Eddie Took stood nearby talking in a low tone with Sirius and Remus. Harry had called her earlier in the day and asked that she come to the Weyr. She had been to the Weyr several times in the past week, but today was different. When she arrived today she was immediately struck by the strange silence that pervaded the Weyr. Normally a busy and noisy place, now the dragons were silent and the riders spoke in hushed tones.

The mood seemed to invade both the science complex and the SAS base next doors as few sounds were heard. It struck Eddie as if the whole area was waiting for something. Something that wasn't good.

The riders were still going about their business, patrols were up, but Eddie could see no one had their heart in it and they were merely going through the motions today. She knew the dragons were upset and very unhappy, there wasn't a single dragon present who didn't have bright yellow twirling eyes.

It struck her strange that they would be so upset, and so quiet. Normally an upset dragon would make it's upset known in a rather noisy fashion, but not today.

May stepped from the large stall and pulled the curtain closed then she walked outside to where Harry and Hermione stood. "He's asking for you Harry. And you too Eddie," she said softly. "The sunlight is hurting his eyes so make sure you pull the curtains tight behind you."

Harry swallowed convulsively; he didn't want to do this! Holding tightly onto Hermione's hand he led her into the dragon infirmary and stopped in front of the curtain. "Are you sure?" Hermione asked in a whisper.

He nodded. "I have to do this, but without you and May I don't think I can," he replied.

"You are stronger than you know Harry," Eddie said softly; she stood nearby watching the Weyrleader. "But it is only human to reach out to our loved ones and draw from their strength when confronted with situations like this."

Harry nodded and looked at both of his girls. "I need you with me." It was an admission of weakness that normally he wouldn't have made in public. The girls knew that and understood, they were feeling the same way.

May nodded and stepped closer, and then she pulled the curtain apart just enough for someone to slip through. The curtains had been installed by the elves several days earlier and completely blocked the stall from any direct light.

Harry took a deep breath and followed her in. One by one they passed the curtain into the stall. It was dim inside and Harry pushed down an irrational surge of fear, it reminded him of his cupboard at the Dursleys.

Ronan watched the curtains wave briefly, separating the stall from the rest of the infirmary. Finally he turned and signaled to Draco who trotted over. "Assemble the riders in dress uniforms. I don't know how much time we have so tell them to hustle."

Draco nodded and dashed off to issue orders.

"Why does this hurt so much?" Karen whispered brokenly.

Ronan wrapped an arm around her and kissed her cheek gently. "Because he is one of ours and he's touched every one of us in some way. Look," he said, pointing out to the runway. "They have been arriving from around the world all day long. They know."

Karen spared a glance to the thousands of dragons lined up, just watching the infirmary and waiting. She leaned against him and sniffled loudly.

"Come on love, let's go get changed," he said trying to be strong for her. But she knew better, she could hear his voice cracking and his eyes had a watery look.

Inside the stall Spath lay quietly, his only noise came from the rough wheeze of his breathing. His wings lay limply at his sides and he barely moved at all when they entered. He had been ill for the past week, but it wasn't until yesterday that they had any idea of just how bad things were. The intense heat source that all dragons had; was extinguished in the ancient dragon. The elder dragon was dying and Hagrid and May could only guess as to the reason.

Old age was their best guess, but they weren't sure what was causing the elder dragon's illness. The onset of the illness had been sudden and brutal. One moment the elder had been healthy, the next he had to be helped into the infirmary.

Not knowing the cause of the illness hadn't stopped them from trying with an ever increasing sense of desperation to save the ancient dragon. Finally yesterday May gave up and spent her time trying to keep the dragon comfortable; she just didn't have enough information to help her treat Spath.

Harry gasped and stood rock still for a moment, and then the tears slid down his cheeks. Spath lay curled up on the sands, his normally brown/bronze coloring reduced to a dull, almost flat brown. Harry loved the old dragon and hated the helpless feeling he got seeing his friend like this and being powerless to help him.

Harry moved forward and pitched to his knees so that he was level with Spath's head. The ancient dragon opened his eyes and he looked at his Weyrleader for a long moment.

"Weyrleader, thank you for coming here."

Harry reached out and caressed his eye ridges gently. He was alarmed to discover the normally hard eye ridges seemed soft like putty. "How can I not? My elder dragon commands the Weyrleader even if he doesn't know it."

Faint streaks of blue and green flashed in Spath's eyes for a brief moment before they faded back to their drab gray again. "Thank you Weyrleader you honor me. I have been blessed among my kind. I was given a chance to help lead our race out of our bondage by helping you. I have watched you grow from weyrling to the mightiest Weyrleader the world will ever know. For us you turned your back on your people, for us you bled and wept. For us you fought the world and for us you won."

"Shhhh Spath, you must rest and get better, your Weyr needs you... I need you," Harry replied brokenly. Tears slid down his cheeks and he made no attempt to hide them. Spath helped turn Harry from frightened school boy into The Weyrleader and Harry knew he owed the old dragon a great deal.

Spath's head shifted slightly and he looked around the room before turning his attention back to Harry. "We both know the fire is out, my time to become an ancestor is near Weyrleader. Now it is time for you to be strong for your Weyr and your mates. Stand tall and be what you were born to be Harry Potter. You will be the Weyrleader that all will remember and I will have helped you become that greatness. I am content with that.

Spath paused and took a shuddering breath and moaned softly.

"Now I understand why we go Between. It is to escape the pain of dying. The instinct to go is very hard to fight when it hurts so much," the dragon said haltingly. Spath turned his head slightly to look at Eddie Took. Understanding dawned in the assembled visitors; Spath had spent the last few days struggling to keep from jumping Between. Hermione gripped Harry's shoulder tightly and he could hear her choke back a sob.

"Green Lady... Eddie Took, I am going to meet your Goddess. I had thought I would have had time to ask you to accept me into your faith. I hope she doesn't mind too much if I didn't have that time. You say she loves even dragons and I intend to ask her about that when I meet her. I am content because you give me hope that things do not end. I have seen too many turns, but my last turns were the very best. I will also thank her for sending us The Weyrleader to deliver us."

Spath fell silent and everyone held their breath.

"Goddess bless dearest Spath. The Goddess will welcome you Spath as she welcomes all," Eddie said softly, her face was streaked with her own tears. The dragons presented unique issues which she had never considered before. Her time among them had taught her to love and respect these gentle beings. "Her will is a mystery, but her hand is seen everywhere. Even in the dragons. The Goddess will be there when you look for her."

"I will ask her when I see her," Spath repeated faintly. "Too many turns and too many dragons have preceded me, now it is my turn to face the unknown. May, I think I would like to sleep now, but tell the Master Smith that I have prevented my leap Between so that he may study my shell. Let my passing set an example to dragon-kind. It is not an easy thing to ask a dragon to do, but as long as they know they will be helping their kin, some will fight the urge to go Between.

"Dronth the dream walker is now eldest, Weyrleader. He is a good dragon. He knows to come here now."

"None can replace you," Harry choked out.

"Everyone is replaced eventually Weyrleader but thank you. Your gift of family is even greater than freeing us from the time of beasts. I am with my family at the end of things. It is comforting, thank you my family." Spath closed his eyes and May stepped forward and checked him over for a few minutes, then she turned to the others.

"He's asleep, he barely had enough energy to talk to us. Let's go outside and leave him to sleep. Dobby will watch over him," May said softly. Harry became aware of Dobby sitting silently in a corner, his eyes fixed on the great dragon. The little elf glanced up at Harry and smiled weakly. His large eyes shimmered with unshed tears and Harry's eyes filled to match his little friend.

Eddie stepped forward and whispered a benediction over the sleeping dragon asking her patron goddess to ease his passage. Spath had suffered greatly these last few days and Eddie couldn't remember a human passing with such dignity after enduring such pain.

Harry led the others out of the stall making sure to let as little sunlight in as possible. Just outside he was enveloped in a hug from Hagrid. Harry understood and hugged his friend back.

Hagrid released Harry before spots started to appear in his vision and he staggered a little before standing straight. Harry wiped the tears from his eyes and waved towards the assembled dragons. "Is that your doing?" he asked quietly.

Hagrid shook his head. "No. They've been arrivin' all day. There are dragons from every weyr in the world here now."

Harry eyed the mass of dragons and shook his head, there had to be at least two thousand dragons present. Even as he eyed the dragons, the combined wings from Maziang and Condron arrived and landed. Like his own riders, the other two Weyrs were in their full dress uniforms.

Harry sighed and turned to Hermione. "I guess we have company tonight, get a hold of Susan and make sure the kitchen hall is aware of the extra people we'll need to feed," he said, and then he strode forward to greet the other Weyrleaders.

The wing leaders and the elves put their heads together and in short order a long row of tables was set up near the entrance to the Infirmary and some people lined up at a buffet. Few were hungry enough to bother.

Harry spoke with Kinny the elf that ran the construction crew and had him set up several large bonfires. The mood was deeply somber as they waited for news. People stood or sat around in clusters as the sun slowly dipped below the horizon and one of the elves started up the fires.

Harry sat with Hermione, Eddie, Ronan, Karen, Sirius and Remus on a blanket that Hermione had conjured. Hermione had also transfigured dress uniforms for herself and Harry. May was with Hagrid inside the Infirmary tending to Spath. The group spoke in quiet tones. "This scares me," Karen finally said.

Harry turned back to the conversation that he had been ignoring.

"What does child?" Eddie asked gently.

"You do, in a way, Eddie," Karen admitted. "Before I impressed, my parents were Church of England and you believed in something that no one could prove. Miracles were suspect and never truly proven. You either believed it was a true miracle or you didn't. My father believed enough to become a lay pastor. My parents believed and I was slowly coming to doubt their beliefs in the face of an ever more scientific and technological world.

"When I met you, you brought to my attention a faith that was supposed to be dead and buried a thousand years ago. I didn't have a problem with that, but when Neruth started telling me about your guiding spirits and I saw them through her eyes it was troubling. Religions weren't supposed to have such visible and compelling evidence."

Eddie smiled at the girl. Karen sat between Ronan's legs, leaning back against him like a backrest of a chair. "What you call compelling evidence may exist in a lot of religions if you just look for it," she said gently. "I haven't the eyesight of a dragon, but I had faith in my spirit guides. When Chekiath told me he could see them, I was surprised that he could, but not surprised that they were there helping me."

Eddie paused and lifted up her palm and whispered a brief prayer. A small flame appeared and danced lazily over her palm. "Is magic a power that some have because of genetics or a manifestation of a greater power? I have no talent for wandless magic and yet, the fire did not need a wand to create. Your 'compelling' proof might be more common than you know dear. You just haven't looked for it yet."

Karen shook her head. "I suppose what I was trying to say was that before I impressed Neruth I was starting to seriously doubt my own faith and that of my parents. Now, things have changed, there are possibilities that I hadn't considered."

Eddie dispelled the flames and smiled gently at the girl. "The very fact that you recognize new possibilities is hopeful. I am not here to convert you as much as I am here to help you see those possibilities for yourself. You fear the unknown. You fear what is happening to Spath because that is ultimately everyone's fate. If I can help ease the fear you have then I have done the Goddess' will."

"You seem so sure of yourself," Karen said weakly in protest.

Eddie chuckled and crossed her arms, looking at the girl. "That is faith sweetheart. I am comforted that the dragons can see my guides, but I knew they were there long before a dragon told me that he saw them."

Karen fell silent considering the Druid Priestess' words.

"Weyrleader?"

Harry looked up. He had been sitting quietly listening to Eddie and Karen talk and hadn't noticed the approach of another dragon. He looked apologetically to Hermione and gently untangled himself and stood. "Dronth, I'm glad you're here but I do wish it were under better circumstances," Harry said softly.

Dronth was the next oldest dragon on the planet and he had an ability that only a few other dragons had. He could share memories with people like all dragons, but he could also insert himself into those memories so that he could explain them to the people. For that reason he was called a dream walker by the dragons even if technically he didn't walk in a dream.

The group on the blanket watched the exchange intently. "As do I Weyrleader, I've always known that I've lived longer than I should have, but didn't understand why until you woke us. I promise I will do my best to advise you."

"I know you will Dronth, our duty will allow for nothing less. Will you move to Campbeltown?" asked Harry.

The Romanian Longhorn looked around for a moment, "It is colder here, but I will adapt. As much as I love my home, my duty to our kind is more important. With your permission I will move in right away."

Harry thought for a moment. "The next senior dragon of Chot Malrire is Pukanth right?"

"Yes Weyrleader."

It surprised no one that Harry easily remembered the names of senior dragons he had met only once. He might not know the name of every dragon, but he was intimately familiar with the names of every dragon in a position of authority in every weyr.

Harry nodded. "I will speak to him tonight and let him know that you're moving in and he is now Senior dragon of Chot Malrire. I will also tell him that he can still seek you out for advice. Tomorrow I would suggest seeking out our Weyrling master and discuss the Weyrling training schedule. Spath took great pleasure in teaching the Weyrlings, I hope you will as well. There are a lot of new things to learn and a lot of things to remember."

"I am sure I will enjoy it Weyrleader. It will be a pleasure to pass on our ways to the Weyrlings."

"Tinny?" Harry called.

An elf smaller than Dobby, appeared with a small pop. "Yes Weyrleader sir?"

"Tinny, this is Dronth, he is moving into the Weyr tonight. Dronth will be our new elder," Harry said gently.

The little elf's ears drooped. "Spath dragon isn't getting better?"

Harry dropped down to one knee so he could look the little elf in the eye. "Spath is a very old dragon. I wish with all my heart that he would get better but not even magic can turn back the clock."

Tinny nodded and a single tear slid down his cheek and splashed against the ground. Tinny looked at Dronth. "Dronth dragon you don't eat elves?" Tinny asked cautiously.

Dronth rumbled with amusement. "Little elf, until today I have never even met one of your kind. I wouldn't dream of eating you. A meal lasts, at best a week, a friend lasts for a lifetime."

Tinny smiled softly and he nodded, causing his ears to flap noisily. "Come, I show you where to sleep and help make your bed."

Harry watched the odd duo walk away, he shook his head then he moved to sit next to Hermione. "Have you noticed that every elf at the Weyr has one particular dragon that they are close friends with?" he asked suddenly.

Hermione looked at him quizzically. "Are you suggesting that elves could impress?" she asked incredulously.

Harry chuckled and shook his head. "No I don't think so, but I do think it's odd that every one of our elves has a favorite dragon and they spend their time either with the other elves, or that one particular dragon," he replied. "Besides, I've never met a young elf and I don't know anyone that has, I wouldn't even know what age they could impress at."

"They are all too old Harry," Chekiath said. "Dobby is nearly forty turns old."

Harry sat heavily next to Hermione, stunned by his dragon's announcement. "Dobby is nearly forty?"

"You know," Eddie mused with a frown, "I can't recall hearing about any young elves either. Saint Patrick's hospital in Dublin uses elves extensively, but I've never seen a young elf."

"Call Dobby," Hermione offered. "He'll come to your call. You can ask him."

Harry shook his head. "He's helping May with Spath. I don't want to interfere with that. I could ask Tinny or Jojo, but I don't know them as well as I do Dobby. Lord knows how skittish they can be, I don't want to scare them away. As important as they are, they are easily spooked because of how they've been treated."

Hermione nodded and kept silent. Her views on house elves had changed radically since she impressed, plus she knew her Harry and knew he would never mistreat an elf. He was paying them three times the Ministry set wage and treated each one like they were personally part of his family. Each elf was bonded to either the Weyr or to an individual, but unlike the old bonds, this was was controlled by magical contract that allowed either party to break the contract.

Sirius scowled. "I clearly remember Kreacher coming to work for my family. Preacher, our old elf had died and Kreacher suddenly appeared one day after that. My mother said it was part of the wizard/elf contract that a new elf would appear to replace an old one."

Harry looked to Remus meaningfully and the older man nodded. "Yes Harry I agree, I think it's worth looking into. Did you notice what Cheki said? He didn't say the elves couldn't impress, he just said they were too old. Can you imagine an elf impressing a dragon? It would strengthen the case that the elves are as sentient as we are."

"They are," Harry replied heatedly.

Remus held up a calming hand. "Relax Harry, I agree, but not everyone does. This would bolster the argument for Elves' rights."

"An elf for a rider," Hermione whispered to herself in an awed tone.

"It may not be possible. Goblins can't impress," he reminded her. He wasn't against the idea, but dragons had been designed to bond with humans. Somehow he didn't think Elves and the other sentient species would be able to bond with dragons.

Harry reached over and squeezed her hand in support. It was clear that there were missing pieces to the story of elves. Pieces that he wanted to know about.

He opened his mouth to speak again when a suddenly wave of anguish hit him like a tsunami. Tears sprang to his eyes and the dragons began to keen loudly. Hermione gasped and bit back a cry, she collapsed against Harry weeping and he wrapped his arms around her.

Chekiath reared up on his hind legs and bellowed his anguish to the uncaring sky. Within seconds half the dragons were bellowing in distress. No words were spoken by any dragon or rider, none needed to be. Even the un-bonded humans knew instantly that the Weyr, riders and dragons were marking the passing of the elder dragon for the planet.

No words needed to be said, Spath was no more and everyone present felt his passing.

Hagrid and May stepped from behind the curtain, the anguish in their expressions was obvious to all. Hagrid headed straight to his Selanth so they could mourn together. May headed to where Harry and Hermione huddled together on the blanket.

May stumbled to her knees next to Harry and Hermione. "I'm so sorry, I couldn't save him. I tried everything I swear," May said brokenly to Harry, as if she had been responsible for Spath's passing. Harry didn't say anything, he just reached for her wrapping an arm around her. Hermione joined them in a three way hug, weeping softly and trying to comfort each other.

"Dear Goddess," whispered an awestruck Eddie. If anyone needed proof that dragons love as much as humans, here was the proof, she thought in awe. She had seen how the dragons responded to the death of Albus Dumbledore, but this was ten times worse than that. All around her she could see riders either clutching at their dragons or their partners. In a few places people huddled with their dragons and their partners. The feeling of loss even pressed against her while she observed the dragons and their human partners.

Nearby Comaloth, Trath and Chekiath huddled together, their flanks touching their heads bowed down to the ground.

"The death of a dragon is a painful experience," Remus offered speaking loud enough to be heard. "The death of the elder dragon must be worse. The dragons love and revere Harry, but they knew that Spath guided Harry and helped him which in turn helped all dragons. Dronth will be very important and much respected by the dragons. But Spath will be remembered as the elder than helped reunite man and dragon."

Eddie nodded thoughtfully, and then she stood. An intense calm descended upon her and in that calm she knew what she must do. Nothing had ever been as clear in her life before as what she must do now. Her guides were whispering encouragement and as she listened, magic seemed to gather around the little woman like a warm protective blanket woven with love.

She looked around calmly, taking in the grieving dragons and the riders. It was a scene unlike any other in her memory and it was one that she would never forget. The magic continued to gather around her until she glowed softly in the deepening twilight. She relaxed, it was all in the Goddess' hands now and it would be her will guiding her.

Eddie clapped her hands once and the sound was like a clap of thunder instantly silencing dragon and rider alike as they turned to the petite woman in surprise and not a little awe. She raised her hands high over her head and spoke in a voice that everyone could clearly hear.

"Mother Goddess, receive our dear friend, Spath. Let his spirit dwell in harmony and peace under your gentle protection. Guide him on his journey to the shining land and comfort his disquiet for leaving us. He was strong and in leaving us he gave us his strength to go on. Protect him and give him our love.

"Bless your children; human and dragon alike, lift up their spirits to lighten their sorrow. Help us through our grief and help us to celebrate Spath and his life. Blessed be dearest Spath. You shaped many lives just by your presence. We are saddened that you had to leave, but happy for you because now you stand before the great lady and can ask your questions."

Slowly she lowered her hands and bowed her head. She wasn't sure why she said those words, they weren't part of the standard prayers for the dead but she had felt almost like she was compelled to speak them.

"Blessed be," she whispered again, and then she swayed ominously. She felt exhausted as the magic that had gathered around her, bled away, leaving her feeling tired and drained.

Remus and Sirius jumped to their feet and helped her sit gently on the blanket. Dobby appeared and offered her a steaming mug of hot chocolate which she accepted gratefully.

The Weyr remained respectfully silent, watching the little druid priestess that they liked and respected. Something inexplicable had happened and no one was really sure exactly what. There had been no extraordinary magic except for that single hand clap and yet everyone knew they had just witnessed something very unusual. The pain and grief of Spath's passing seemed lessened by her words and everyone present was comforted and filled with hope.

"Eddie?" May said gently, then she sniffled and wiped at her tears using a handkerchief Harry had given her. "Eddie are you all right?"

Eddie lifted her head tiredly. "Just tired dear, I don't know what came over me. That wasn't the usual benediction for the dead, but I felt compelled to say that. My guides were telling me very clearly what must be done. It wasn't like a typical usual compulsion; all I felt was a great peace and love for Spath and for everyone here."

"This is what I meant about compelling evidence," muttered Karen Khan with a sniffle of her own.

Eddie shot the girl a tired smile.

"I don't feel as sad now," Chekiath announced into the silence. "I will miss Spath, but Green Lady says he's moved to a nicer place. Its comforting to know we just don't end. I think I like that idea."

"We all do mate," Harry said softly.

"Soranth would you please tell Lee to prepare a press statement about Spath and Dronth for tomorrow morning? Also pass the word that every manned Weyr will fly their flags at half mast for thirty days." Harry said softly. Whatever mood had infected the Weyr, had affected everyone. Everyone was talking softly as if unwilling to break the mood.

"Lee says he'll handle it Weyrleader," Soranth replied.

Both girls looked at him strangely and he shrugged. "We've taken a big loss tonight, but we still need to produce fourteen tons of hot rocks this week. Scales need to be delivered, Ronan has another manure shipment to Gringotts to make. As much as I would like to give everyone time off to mourn, we must continue going about our business."

Ronan groaned and closed his eyes. "Don't remind me," he moaned. Karen laughed and poked him in the side causing him to sit up and eye her warily. The goblins handled the resale of the manure to the growers for fertilizer. Twice a month Ronan would oversee the delivery of tons of manure that had been carefully loaded into cargo containers.

Normally elves would load the manure. Unless Harry needed to punish someone, then they were handed a shovel. They didn't have to load an entire container, but usually it felt like they had by the time their punishment hours were up.

The goblins would clean out the containers and have them ready for the dragons to pick up so that they could be reused. Twice a month, Campbeltown would send fifty loaded containers to Gringotts and Ronan saw to it that the operation ran smoothly. It was a job that he hoped to be able to pass off soon to someone else.

"In other words, life goes on," Remus said.

"Don't you want to talk about what happened tonight with Eddie?" asked Hermione.

Harry smiled and shook his head. "No I don't really. I think that each of us must figure that out and have faith in our own opinions for a change."

Eddie chuckled softly at Harry's choice of words and Hermione huffed a little. She hated being confronted with a mystery that she couldn't resolve.

"What do you think happened?" May asked Harry intently.

He looked towards the enclosed stall through the open doors and his brow furrowed like he was concentrating hard. "Eddie says she was compelled to say what she did. But for what purpose? Her words offered only hope and a heartfelt prayer that Spath would find his peace in an afterlife. There was no attempt to sway us to a course of action, no attempt to convert riders and dragons. It was just a prayer and nothing more and yet I was comforted by it. All of us, dragon and rider were comforted by it and our grief was eased. As she spoke I felt like someone was listening keenly to her words. Whether it was the Goddess or Spath listening, I don't know. All I do know is that it was comforting and I am certain that Spath is happy and at peace.

"What we witnessed, I think, was a confirmation that Spath has gone on to a place where he's no longer in pain. I think we were told in a roundabout way that our dragons are loved by someone other than the riders and other people. I think that we each have to examine what happened and come to our own conclusions. Some things just aren't meant to be analyzed too deeply."

He said that looking at Hermione who blushed and looked away. She knew she had a tendency to over analyze things. It was a habit that May and Harry were both working on helping her, but it wouldn't go away overnight.

May leaned closer to Hermione and nudged her with her shoulder. Hermione looked up and returned May's smile. They weren't trying to hurt her, it was just something she did and she knew she needed to work on it.

Harry noted several people from Sir Robert's team waiting nearby with a large flatbed trailer truck with an attached crane. They would move Spath's body to a large refrigerated unit in the science complex before they transported the body to the group that would study him.

It answered the one question he had been afraid to ask. Spath had not gone Between at the last minute. In a way he was glad of that, Spath suffered terribly in fighting the urge to go Between. Had he gone Between in the last moment of his life that would have made his suffering all for naught. He would honor Spath and any dragon that managed to resist the urge because they were special among dragon-kind.

"Ronan, assemble the wings and riders. If Sir Robert's people are going to take him away, we'll stand for his sake, and honor his passing," Harry said, then he stood and squared his shoulders.

Ronan nodded and started shouting orders as a driver slowly backed up the large truck into the infirmary. The Weyr would honor their elder dragon who would help his kind even in death.

---

Author's Notes and Mockeries:

* First off, a deep note of thanks for everyone that reviewed. The response was a bit overwhelming at points and gratifying.

* Now then, some review responses and we'll lead off with a question to AussieFFaddict. What is Tim Tam? It sounds like something Alyx might want to use someday to torture people with.

* L. Ravensky asks if the chapters will cover significant periods of time. The best answer I can give is that there will be time gaps that may skip a year or more. Life isn't one continuous crisis event, but more like a series of crisis' separated by periods of intense boredom. As things heat up and cool down we'll see a variable rate of time compression based on what's happening.

* Ar Kaos wants to know if the Weyrs will involve themselves in humanitarian efforts that occur in the middle of a shooting war, ie Bosnia, or some places in Africa etc. To stop the wondering I'll say no. The Weyrs are neutral and will help in any endeavor that doesn't pose undue risk to a rider and dragon. The story is complex enough without bringing in that kind of plotline.

* Team503 had a bunch of questions that I'm not going to answer. Silly reader, like I'm going to give away plot points? I will say that the topic of religion will pop up now and again. You saw a little of that in this chapter and it will appear from time to time, not as a major plot point, but one that stubbornly refuses to die. Religion is a touchy subject to write about because no matter how you portrait it, you offend someone, so I try not to let it become too important to my stories. Oh and to all those pygmy Buddhist cannibals I may have insulted, sorry about that.

* There are no plans to market breakfast cows. Sorry!

* Iphiglina next time you dance around naked, take photos. But seriously your English is better than some people I know that were born in England, plus they are always mispronouncing things. Hello, Aluminum anyone?

* For all those that wanted to rent the bullet point but didn't want to participate in the movie, no worries. The movie deal fell through thanks to some carefully phrased insults towards the midget... er Tom Cruise. Now however we have another problem. What do to with 1200 people sized llama costumes.

* To the unsigned reviewer that wanted to rent the bullet point, you almost had me when you offered naked photos, but then you ruined it when you said it was of your Mom in bed with a chimpanzee. Seriously is it any wonder why I delete unsigned reviews? And frankly folks if you're going to try to bribe me with smut, you better be prepared to offer up a sample or two. I don't want to agree to something only to discover I'd been bribed into receiving photos of Sister Rosetta Stone and Father Flannigan playing "Smock me again father, I have sinned!".

* This Bullet Point is available for rent. See below for details.

* LordAmnesia wants to sell wolverines cheap. For more information, contact LordAmnesia courtesy of the local trauma center.

* The above bullet point was rented by LordAmnesia who regrettably, passed away before he could pay us. Cheap bastard! However, since he was offering to pay us in wolverines, I think we got off lucky. Besides, his family is allowing Alyx to practice her taxidermy skills on his body. He looks a little weird with his foot coming out of his ear and I won't mention what's coming out his butt, but hey, it makes Alyx happy.

* If you haven't checked out some of our earlier stories, try them. Just remember some of them are old enough to have invented the cliches that people hate these days.