Chapter Twenty-Two
Jousts
– Author's note: The dragons have some business to handle. This chapter won't be light and fluffy.
Jonah Whitelock had planned this operation carefully after getting alerted to what was going on. When he'd gotten word of a certain something that failed to live up to the standards of society that he ascribed to, he had decided to do something about it instead of waiting for someone else to do it. Purebloods were the lords of creation, no matter where they went. Anything that they saw was theirs to command. Anywhere they set their feet upon, they held primacy.
Especially over any beasts, mudbloods, or mewing muggles bleating about things that didn't concern him or were far beneath his notice.
Well, he said that from time to time. The news about dragons, of all things, had thrown him for a loop when he'd heard it. Who would have thought that dragons had an under department in the Ministry dedicated to them and not the Control department itself? That made absolutely no sense and this surely had to be looked at. It was a waste of resources better used for other things, he was sure.
The Boy-Who-Lived was an asset. Nothing more. It didn't matter that this was a snot-nosed kid. He represented power that needed to be harnessed until that power was used up – preferably in the service of the Purebloods. After all, he was just a halfblood thanks to that mudblood bitch that whelped him. She'd been a pretty woman which everyone had agreed upon without much question, but even the loveliest of roses were snipped from time to time. That made for more roses as time passed, and the snipped ones were used for a time and then discarded for the next one to come along.
It made perfect sense to him. After all, he'd snipped more than a few roses himself. Still did, for that matter.
What didn't make sense was this twaddle about a dragon adopting the boy. What drivel that was. Did this dragon expect the boy to breathe fire, eat bloody sheep carcasses and fly around mindlessly mating with another dragon? That was about all a live dragon was good for anyway. That, and take up space.
Obviously, there was something wrong with whoever said that silliness was suitable and that meant that the Ministry had to be purged of the halfbloods, mudbloods and other improper types that knew nothing in their mewlings. Before that could happen, the dragons had to be put down. That didn't bother him. He was in the market for a new pair of dragon-hide boots anyway. Maybe a long coat or duster, too. A belt wouldn't go amiss, although upon reflection he'd have to get three made. One for him, one for his wife, and one for his mistress. Keeping them from finding out about each other had been tricky and this possibly might not be the best way to go.
This 'Dragonborne Treaties and Treatises' absurdity. Who had thought that was a good idea? Whoever it was long dead. Had to be. There was no way that a mere dragon could be responsible for teaching the Boy-Who-Lived the things that he had to know about his place in the Purebloods' world. Whitelock had a few ideas on how to do that.
It had taken a few days, but he'd gathered a few people that could help with the first part. There had been some extra time needed to gather some other things too, but they were all gathered. The entry through the gates of Hogwarts wasn't a problem, with their mind on the purposes they were supposedly here for and the entry times all staggered anyway. There had been a slight buzz that came from somewhere, but who knew the things that Dumbledore did on the grounds. Barmy old codger.
It was either that or there was something in all those lemon drops.
A look in the face of the man next to him revealed similar thoughts reflected in his eyes. Those eyes rolled, and the lips mouthed the words, "lemon drops, you think?"
Whitelock's eyes rolled unconsciously even though he tried his hardest to stop it and he added a headshake. The group wasn't here to verify Dumbledore's sweets collection. Although more than once they had all wondered how the old man could eat so much candy, chocolates, cakes, and whatever else it was he scarfed down and stay so thin.
"It must be nice to still be able to burn it off. Now stay focused."
It had taken some time to set this up, even with the help from his deep-cover contact in the Ministry. The groups he had arranged to be here were here ostensibly as observers for educational practices for a couple of newly-established foreign magical academies. The International Confederation of Wizards' Education Division handled requests like this all the time and there were occasionally visitors doing that very thing.
Whitelock had set up two fictitious schools and managed to sneak in a group or two, who set up lodging in the Forbidden Forest just out of range of the Hogwarts wards. Aside from a couple of twenty-five foot sections running into the woods connected to the perimeter walls, there wasn't a walled section there for the castle. It made sense, since the Forest was considered an obstacle in itself. Once those groups left the wards, the Castle didn't track them again.
Another group was due to arrive, with one-time-use magical passes to allow them through the gate without need of Hagrid to open it. This was just as well, since some of those wouldn't have reacted well to the half-giant's presence. Whitelock didn't really have any problem with Hagrid – everyone who'd went to Hogwarts in the last five decades knew him – but there were a few 'specialists' in the groups that didn't attend Hogwarts. He didn't need the problems.
Only a couple hadn't been able to make it to the staging area for one reason or another. That wasn't a huge worry, but Whitelock was still a bit jumpy. They had more than enough people. In fact, there were really three times as many people as needed. With that in mind, there really wasn't any worries about not having enough people to do what they came here to do.
There was the sound of some voices ahead. One was a little stronger than the others, and sounded rather steamy. It sounded a lot like his mistress when she wanted something, but from what he could hear of it, there was nothing steamy about doing parchmentwork and contacting Ministry offices about something.
"Sounds like bureaucracies doing their thing and fouling up everything it touches," one of the others said after listening a bit.
Whitelock privately agreed, but it wasn't anything to him. As long as things went his way, he didn't care who got fouled up on anything.
"Get ready. I think we're close."
The others nodded to him and brought crooked clubs out from under their robes. These had special properties aside from looking ugly. They had cost enough, that was for sure. Their conclave had enough funds to handle it and nearly everyone was here to see to their self-appointed task.
"Spread out."
This was done quietly, even as the conversation about whatever it was about was drawn closer to. The first target was a green dragon that seemed to be humming to itself as it listened to something. A few of the crooked clubs were pointed at her.
"Fire!"
|:-:|
Rhiain was listening to something, as it happened.
Over the last week or so, she had discovered that Hogwarts' ley-line locations focused magic in several areas on the grounds and if she rested over one of those areas, she could hear the music of the ground. It was something that she was still working on, trying to figure out why this spot did this and that spot did that. She wasn't as learned as some of the others or some of the guest lecturers that came to Hogwarts, but she was more interested in music instead of those other subjects and fields of study. This intrigued her even more than some of the more amusing drama that played out in the school.
Annika couldn't hear it or perceive what Rhiain had found which was a mixed blessing. For all of the other dragon's deficiencies in being able to sing, it would have helped Rhiain figure out something else about what she'd found. Maybe one of the singers in the Castle would be able to help, but she would have to figure out who to ask first.
The tone changed suddenly as she shifted her weight and she looked up to see someone pointing something at her. Something screamed in her mind and her purple eyes went wide before she jumped straight up in reaction to the mind shock.
A beam of magic scorched her underside. It didn't quite make contact, but the air around whatever it happened to be was superheated into a plasma spike that burned down her belly. She screamed in pain as she flipped over and landed on her back. One of her forearms was twisted under her weight and the crack of breaking bone was clear to hear for anyone nearby.
From her position, she could see that the bolt of magic had landed close to Sturdy Grower. The transferred energy picked him up and threw him a short distance without care for his safety as a small crater exploded outward. He had fallen to the ground with clumps of dirt and sod having cascaded over him, and Rhiain could see rivulets of blood tracing down his face and arms.
She screamed again as the broken forearm ground against her side and Rhiain distantly noticed that her sister dragons had answered her. Rhiain rolled over despite the pain and bounded toward Neville. She could see that the runes in his hands had spiked and was pulsing in time with the waves of anger emanating from the Castle. The green dragon carefully picked him up, moaning to herself as her other arm grated in pain.
~~ Sturdy Grower! Take your place! Hurry!~~
Neville didn't know what Rhiain had said, exactly, but he wasn't waiting for the translation charm to kick in. He scrambled up her arm as she tried to get him up to where he usually sat for their flights, not noticing her hiss of pain. The urgency in her voice was easy to distinguish and he figured that it was better to act now and talk later.
The Welsh Green zoomed into the air even as draconic blood dripped to the ground. The purple drops hissed as they hit the ground.
More bolts of magic exploded around them as they escaped.
|:-:|
"All of you! Quickly! Get behind me!"
Tessaies didn't know what was going on, but when she saw Rhiain fly into the air with a bit of a wobble and the evidence of her wounding, she didn't stop to ask questions either. Quiangya bolted into the air as well, chasing after the injured dragon from across the small field.
The humans didn't wait to ask any questions either. The Unspeakable's eyes went wide under the hood as he recognized the scorch mark. He tugged at a button on his left sleeve and no one noticed that it faded away.
"Do as she says! Wands out! Mother Eminence, you stand into danger – be careful that you don't get hit directly!"
The Hungarian Horntail hissed something that wasn't translated, but probably wasn't a benediction. Everyone could see Harry's eyes go wide and he gaped at the large dragon as she flamed the sky.
Whatever she'd said apparently wasn't suitable for young ears and no one wanted to find out what it was.
Sirius snatched Harry up. He did his best impression of Prongs and hoofed it into the Quarters. The others piled in after him.
"What the hell is going on out there?"
Madam Bones' question was echoed in each of their minds, even as she rapped her wand on her badge.
|:-:|
The pillar of dragonfire alerted Annika, and she used her greater mental abilities to tap into Tessaies' mind. She gasped at the answer, and gasped again with a growl as another bolt ripped into the stone of the Dragon Quarters. That malevolent energy sheared off several spikes of rock that landed on her back and bounced off her scales. Those didn't penetrate, thanks to the bone ridges on her spine that deflected them more or less away from her but they did shatter some of those ridges.
However, one spike ripped open one of her wing sails and another broke a spar on the same wing.
She screamed in rage and returned fire. The bright blue fireball charred the wizard where he stood even as he drew in a breath to cast again. There was a pattern on the ground where his shadow had been. Annika screamed again, this time in pain, while fueled her rage and drove it to greater heights.
Her babies and her favorites were in danger and there was killing to be done to remove that danger.
|:-:|
Dan and Emma looked out of the quarters as Tessaies stomped out on her way to the warpath.
"Harry, is it always this lively?"
Dan was trying make a joke but his voice shook.
"Lively? This is practically staid."
Neither Dan or Emma was quite sure how to take that.
|:-:|
For her part, Quiangya was taking in information.
~~ Talk to me, young one. How are you hurt? ~~
Rhiain answered as her voice trembled.
~~ My forearm is broken and there's a burning pain on my belly. ~~
Quianya ducked under the green dragon to take a look and grimaced. There were a few pockets of subcutaneous fat bubbling out and it had to hurt. She gained altitude again to look Rhiain in the eye.
~~ Is Sturdy Grower all right?~~ The boy seemed to be holding on for all he was worth, but Quiangya could see that there was something burning in his eyes. His eyebrows were drawn together in anger.
~~ I think so. He hasn't said anything.~~
The red dragon nodded, and debated something.
~~ Can you fly level? I need to do something about that leakage.~~
~~ Cauterize it. I can fly level.~~
Quiangya nodded again, proud of the young dragon. This wouldn't do her skin many favors, but there was a battle going on below them and she had to work quickly. There simply wasn't time for anything fancy.
~~ Forgive me, little one. Watch Sturdy Grower as I work. ~~
Rhiain nodded and changed course to allow Quiangya better access. Neville didn't know what they were saying to each other, and not for the first time wished that he could speak with them as Harry did. The unhurt talon came up to tap near where he was seated and Neville took it. He could see that it shook a bit, which was unusual for the Welsh Green.
For some reason, he could tell that Rhiain needed the reassurance for whatever was about to come and he was damned if he wasn't going to help.
Quiangya flashed underneath and he could see the start of a trickle of white-hot flame spurt toward Rhiain's belly. The smell of burning dragon flesh pervaded the air around them, but the forward motion helped to dissipate it. The green dragon screamed again and bobbled in her flight a bit. Neville gripped the talon as tight as he could and tried not to think about how high up in the air he currently was.
~~ Got it, but you're going to have to float in the lake for a day or two. How does it feel? ~~ Quiangya asked.
~~ It hurts worse than laying an oversized egg, you brathiad â phen coch!~~
Quiangya snorted, despite the situation.
~~ I do have a red head and I am a bitch. That's fair. Now, stay in the air and direct our fire. ~~
Rhiain nodded and started a wobbly turn back toward the group on the ground. They could see dragonfire erupting.
Neville had enough at this point and screamed his thoughts in Old Norse. The runes in his hands matched the fire in his eyes as he expounded upon his subject. The dragons looked at each other, a bit shocked. They shrugged the best that they could while in flight.
~~ Makes perfect since to me, if a bit bloodthirsty. Do you think Sturdy Grower is getting a bit dragon-like on us? ~~ Quiangya mused.
~~ We'll ask later. In the meantime, we have killing to do like he said. They're all dressed in gray with green hoods. There's a group coming out of the Forest and another larger group sneaking through the gates. No student or staff are dressed like that. Tell the others. ~~
Quiangya nodded in agreement and dove for the ground. Her fireballs made short work of part of the Forest group and even as the fireballs landed, she was broadcasting the warning to Tessaies and Annika. Rhiain remained at her position in the air, providing overwatch. She watched the untouched part of the group that came out of the Forest scatter.
~~ Never make a dragon mad. ~~
Had Neville heard what Rhiain muttered in something that he could understand, he would have agreed, but he was muttering his own thoughts to himself. Something caught his eye and he jabbed a finger at it.
"Rhiain! There!"
|:-:|
Steelarse jumped up from the stool where he had just sat down with a mug of grog. Of all the things to happen, he hadn't really expected this.
That was beside the point. At least thirty wizards was trying to sneak through the gates. One of the other goblins took off for the walls, enlarging a magically-shrunken ladder as he went. The goblin raced up the ladder without missing a beat and stuck his head over the wall to see.
Steelarse couldn't see the younger goblin's eyes go wide, but he could see the shoulders and arms stiffen in surprise. Considering that the younger goblin jumped off the rung and slid down the outsides of the ladder in a hurry, whatever he'd seen meant that it was too important to descend the safer way.
"Sir! There are at least two more groups coming! Dressed the same, carrying weapons of some kind! Also, flaming torches as well which are burning with a black flame!"
"Are you telling me that Hogwarts is being invaded?" Steelarse said, incredulous shock in his voice. "Hogwarts is supposed to be a sanctuary!"
The black flame was a serious concern. As if the dragonfire wasn't worry enough.
"Send a message to the Headmaster. He needs to know. The children need to be guarded. Split the troops. Half to the refugees," meaning Madam Bones and the Ministry group, Sirius, Harry, and the Grangers, "and half to repel invaders. They've already attacked the dragons, who asked for our help beforehand. We respond."
"Yes, sir!"
The Goblin saluted and dashed off. For his part, Steelarse drew his blades and wondered if Tessaies was amenable for a quick consultation.
|:-:|
Tessaies was not amenable for a quick consultation after hearing what Quiangya had to say after she dropped out of the sky.
Tessaies was amenable to turning certain wizards into scorched paste, dripping with steaming blood. Then she was leaning toward taking that scorched paste and decorating her walls with a nice tableau depicting her battle. It didn't matter to her that it would be in shades of red, as her dragon senses allowed her to see in other ways than visible light. The shouts she heard from the strangers only hardened her resolve.
"Get the Potter kid!"
The golden eyes turned molten when she heard those shouts. Harry's head shot up at the sound of his name being shouted in tones that were not very nice, and he tried to herd everyone up against the far walls of Tessaies' Quarters. Madam Bones, the Unspeakable, and his godfather was having none of it.
"Black! Get back there before I neuter you! Twice!"
There was a startled yip from the man in question at Madam Bones' terse command, and Dan Granger reached out for the baby blue hood to yank him back. This made him yip again, and sounded rather strangled.
"Sorry, pal, but when a woman shouts at you like that in those terms…" Dan muttered.
There wasn't time for more repartee as Tessaies let loose after seeing that everyone was in the Quarters.
There was a man bringing up something thick to bear upon her body, with four others nearby. She ducked her head down, dodging the blast and used her momentum to swing her tail around. It carried the whole of her body mass behind the centrifugal movement of the spiked tail. The mass of the bone and muscle in her tail by itself was bad enough, but added to the changeover from one powerful hip to the other, it produced an awesome effect.
The Horntail's lethal spikes scythed through the group without enough resistance to even begin to slow the swinging tail. A couple of attackers was 'lucky,' if such a word could apply to merely having body parts shaved off by the tips of the spikes. The others were broken as they stacked upon the spikes like bits of parchment shoved onto a nail.
Tessaies completed her turn. An absent thought flicked the bodies off her tail and she didn't notice the flesh ripping through the serrations. Her next targets in the swelling group were locked in and a quick thought inventoried her body's offensive choices.
The flame needed to build up a bit from what she had unleashed a moment before. That was no matter. There was a reason (or more) a Hungarian Horntail was the most respected in matters of battle and feared when protecting their young.
She roared her displeasure and leapt into battle.
Talons slashed through several.
Teeth rent through those in the group that the talons weren't aimed at.
Feet stomped and ground the bodies into paste. It didn't matter to the angry dragon that they weren't dead first.
The tail whipped around again, pinning an unlucky soul to a tree through the groin. Another twitch and the tree was ripped up out of the ground to be thrown to the side. It landed on top of the screaming man, silencing him.
She didn't escape without a scratch, however. There were at least two glancing blows from whatever those clubs were, but she was moving too fast for a solid hit. There was a strike on a wing, which dangled uselessly. Another hit a shoulder, and that really made her mad. She didn't need her wings to fight on the ground, aside from a few tricks she knew but she did need her shoulders.
Dragon blood hit the ground just barely quicker than the attackers' bodies as Tessaies mowed through them.
|:-:|
~~ There's another group coming from the Forest! They're bringing something big! ~~
The relayed message from Rhiain came at the wrong time for Quiangya to see, since she was facing the wrong way. She couldn't get turned around in the time that she would have needed to, since dragons her size couldn't turn on a Sickle.
~~ I've got them. ~~
Annika's voice was cold, as cold as the icy-blue of her eyes as they ranged her targets and computed the spread that she required. There were several people approaching from the castle at high speed, Dumbledore in the lead, that could see the blood coursing from her flanks.
They could also see the dragonfire ripping out from her a moment later and stopping the attack from that quarter cold. It was easy to see that Annika sniped each one before anyone in that group could think to dodge. Each precise burn tore the heads off everyone in the group and cauterized the stumps. Had anyone stopped to think, they wouldn't have been surprised. After all, a Swedish Short-Snout had the hottest flame.
The weapon that had been pulled on rough wooden wheels by the group was torched into fine ash with a final shot from the injured dragon. The black flame that had been guttering in a brazier winked out.
|:-:|
"What in the hell is going on out there?!" Malcolm shouted.
"Four dragons throwing a major wobbly!" Charlie shouted back. The cheap office rocked on its foundation as dragonfire sailed just over the top.
"But why?"
"You go out there and ask!"
"You first!"
"No, you first! You asked!"
The office rocked again as a body slammed into the outside wall and the window no one could open was painted red. There was a moment's silence.
"I'll just stay right here," Malcolm concluded.
"Good idea."
"Whiskey?"
"Works for me."
|:-:|
Jonah Whitelock lay on the ground, waiting for his chance. His wand arm had been burned away, thanks to that fat silver one. The bones in his left leg was powder, thanks to being stomped by the Horntail. He was hurting, but he held his wand in his left hand. It had been a lucky chance that he'd changed hands just before losing one. It was possible to cast with his off-hand, but not as easy.
He was going to kill Black, Bones, and the mudbloods, at least.
"I'd lay the wand down slowly, Jonah, if I were you."
The calm voice came from behind him. Whitelock hissed in pain as he finally managed to look over his burned shoulder to see Albus Dumbledore leveling his wand straight between his eyes. The old wizard's other hand was alight with magical energy. He didn't look happy and there was no laughter in the blue eyes.
"Oh, shite."
"Quite."
The wand thumped to the ground.
|:-:|
Unspeakables surged to respond to Hogwarts. They threw on gear and hustled to get arranged into portkey transport positions.
"What's going on?" One shouted to another.
"Dragons defending against an attack on Hogwarts!"
"What?!"
"Not kidding. Curavien says that there are several groups that are trying to kidnap the Potter boy."
"What?! Are you frickin' kidding me?"
"Still not kidding. We need to go before big mama and the girls burn everyone to the ground before we can find out who was doing what?"
"How are you going to stop her? Or the aunties?"
"I was hoping you had a good idea."
There wasn't any time for the first Unspeakable to respond to that before the portkey took the rapid response team into otherspace.
|:-:|
"Rhiain! Over there! What's that?"
Neville's eyes were watering from the speed that Rhiain was flying her search pattern, but he was able to see something on the side that she wasn't currently looking. Her head swung around and the purple eyes narrowed. She didn't have the same problems Neville did and was gifted with a dragon's visual acuity, beside.
~~ Good eye, Sturdy Grower, good eye. ~~
He didn't hear that for the rush of the air in his ears. Neville did hear the whistle singing over one wing's sail area as that wing arced through a sharp reefing turn. He was also glad of the sticking charm holding him down.
~~ Quiangya! ~~
The shout to the Chinese Fireball was heard, even over the distance they were then. Rhiain couldn't disguise the pain she was in any longer and both Neville and the other dragon could hear her moan.
~~ I see them. One group of crispies, coming up. Land and take cover. ~~
Neville had no idea what the red dragon was hissing, but it made him shiver. He watched her tip over and dive toward the ground, her wings locked wide and her tail straight.
|:-:|
"Hey, need any help?"
The question interrupted the wizard trying to get the odd contraption to work. It was supposed to rip through the dragons but it wasn't doing anything. The black fire in its brazier was roaring to beat the band, but that was all. He stood up straight as his back popped and turned toward the voice.
"Yeah, I'm trying to…"
There wasn't anything else. The last thing the wizard saw was the sight of a grinning Goblin just beyond the edge of a razor-sharp blade.
In fact, it was the last thing a lot of this group saw. There were a few that threw down their wands and slung themselves to the ground in the hopes that they survived the next few minutes.
|:-:|
Quiangya could see the last group blundering beneath her. There obviously was no communication between the several groups, and there were more of those than she originally thought. She wasn't yet in range, but she could see several raise spindly wands and fire something at Annika, who was still pinned down.
She could just barely hear shouts from below.
"There! Aim for that broad side!"
"I don't think that's her side."
"Whatever! Everyone hit that!"
~~ Of course, they would get behind her and fire at her arse. At least they wouldn't miss. It's not like it's a small target, ~~ she muttered to herself.
There would have to be a discussion after this about Annika's… enjoyment… of house-elf baking.
In the meantime, all the spells did was irritate Annika as they bounced off her scales in ripples. The outraged roaring she was doing covered Quiangya's low-level approach quite nicely as she modulated her fireballs. Smaller but hotter was her choice for this run.
Annika might have been making noise, but everyone in the area could hear the ripping snarls of the fireballs burning through the air as Quiangya cut every one of them down without mercy.
|:-:|
Rhiain landed unsteadily in the chilly waters of the Black Lake, and Neville could hear a distinct sigh of relief coming from her. She drifted into range of the translation charm after a moment, sculling slowly toward the shore with pained motions of her tail. The injured forearm wasn't helping her efforts to hold a straight course.
"Rhiain, what was that?"
"I don't know, Sturdy Grower."
He could hear the pain in her voice.
"You're hurt! Stay here, I'll get help!"
Before she could stop him, he broke the sticking charm to dive into the cold water and swim the forty or so feet to the shore. Neville struggled up the muddy bank and ran toward the Dragon Quarters. As he ran, he could see shadows racing along the ground ahead of him and he looked up.
In the sky, there were three flights of dragons of all kinds.
He gaped at them and continued on.
|:-:|
The Aurors called by Madam Bones' badge met the Unspeakables at the gates.
"You get the call too?"
"Yes. Is there anything left?"
"Don't know yet."
There was a moment of confusion when they saw a Goblin in full battle array, of all things, waving them through.
"Aurors. Unspeakables. My name is Steelarse. Come in – there's a group of people that need to be taken charge of and dragons that need treatment. There was a fierce battle."
"Dumbledore?"
"He's here. Everyone's at the Dragon Quarters – well, most everyone. There were several groups that formed a multiple-pronged attack along several vectors."
That brought them up short.
"How many are left?"
"Not many, in between my group and Mother Eminence and her dragons. In fact, we didn't have to do much really."
"What happened?"
"The dragons were attacked and it seems that Potter was the target of a kidnap attempt at the same time."
"While at Hogwarts?"
The Aurors felt that the Unspeakables could be forgiven for the level of incredulity in the normally even tones. They weren't too feeling too level or the epitomes of equanimity themselves.
"While at Hogwarts. Madam Bones and her group are all okay. They took shelter in Tessaies' Quarters."
"What? That doesn't sound like Madam Bones," the Senior Auror noted with some surprise.
"Or Curavien, for that matter," the lead Unspeakable added.
The Goblin snorted.
"Would you get in the way of a multiple-ton dragon intent on protecting her eggs, babies, or guests? The Mother Eminence was not happy, gentlemen, and not concerned with observing any niceties once they tried to snatch Potter."
"Ah…"
Everyone looked at each other and decided to drop that line of inquiry. The group was silent as they walked.
"I don't remember that the last time I was here," one Auror said.
"You wouldn't. That would be one of the groups that Annika burned to the ground at long range. Too bad they're all charred bones."
"Er… right. Can we talk to her?"
"I wouldn't right now. On top of a broken wing, they made a big mistake."
"Mistake? What was the mistake?"
"They went for the biggest target they had available to them and aimed for her arse."
There were several aborted snorts and a few coughs at that.
"I wouldn't suggest that you mention that specific thing in your condolences for her condition. The wing, yes… anything else, no."
Everyone agreed. The married members of the group a bit quicker than the others. It didn't take but another few glances at the charred bones to reinforce that decision.
"Er…" the Auror said after a moment. "Is anyone else feeling freaked out by seeing all those dragons overhead and everyone going about their business anyway?"
"Welcome to Hogwarts," the Goblin grinned. He wasn't feeling all that steady about it himself, but he was damned if he was going to show it to these wand-wavers.
|:-:|
~~ Is it safe to come out now? ~~
Harry was very cautious in what he asked. Tessaies was slumped against a stout tree that had managed to resist the carnage. She raised her head slowly.
~~ Yes, Speaker. Everyone has been put down.~~
Her voice was tired, not mentioning that he'd used Parseltongue. Harry eased his way out with Madam Bones behind him.
"What just happened?" she asked, to no one in particular.
Harry shrugged, a bit helplessly.
Dumbledore walked up, levitating a bound Jonas Whitelock behind him.
"Perhaps you might start by asking this young man."
Considering the Headmaster's age, Whitelock was actually a young man in comparison. However, the rarely heard sarcasm in Dumbledore's voice made Madam Bones' investigatory antennae twitch.
"After I got the warning, I and some others responded and found him causing trouble."
Madam Bones stared at his blatant understatement of the last hour or so of activity. Dumbledore ignored the look.
"There are several others that survived the dragons' counter-attack and I have Poppy and her interns stabilizing them."
There was a small grin on his face at the mention of the interns that didn't seem to match the seriousness of the situation they were in.
"What's so funny, Albus?"
"Hmm? Oh, nothing, really. I was reminded about the poker game that I sat in on last night."
"Poker? What is that?"
"It's a card game, played with money or colorful chips but that's not important right now."
Dan Granger snorted from the open doorway of Tessaies' Quarters and they looked at him.
"Nothing."
Madam Bones affixed an Auror-grade Stare Number Six on him and went off to talk to Whitelock after waving toward the Aurors approaching her position. Dan went to sit by Harry, who had wandered over to sit by Tessaies. She raised her head to look at him.
"Thank you, Mother Eminence," Dan said. "He's kinda important to my daughter and I didn't want to have to explain to her what happened."
There was a light snort from the large dragon, and it was a measure of how tired she was that no tendrils of smoke issued from her nostrils.
"I don't think there will be any explanation needed, but if I were you I'd move."
"What?"
Dan looked up in barely enough time to get out of Hermione's way before she bowled him over on her way to Harry's side. Behind her, Daphne Greengrass, Tracy Davis, and Luna Lovegood followed, if a bit more sedately. All had dragon badges that were aglow.
|:-:|
The Castle hummed to herself in some distress. Her friends were hurt. It was a good thing that she was able to sound an alarm to the upcoming dragon lecturers through the wards in the Dragon Quarters. They had relayed the message to others that she didn't know about. This apparently had gotten others concerned and those made their way to Hogwarts at best speed to help out.
|:-:|
Charlie was busy grimacing at the damage to Annika's wing.
"It can be fixed Annika. It's going to be a slow process for you, but you're young enough to heal quicker than if you were Tessaies' age."
"Have you been to see her yet?"
"Not yet. She's next."
A feminine voice broke in.
"I'll help you, Charlie."
"Stefaniya!"
Even though Annika was in a good deal of pain now, she perked up at the note in Charlie's voice. She watched with interest as the young woman closed with the red-headed dragon handler and caressed his cheek. Stefaniya leaned in to whisper something in his ear.
Charlie blushed and looked up at Annika.
"There's no way I can hope you didn't overhear that, is there?"
She grinned at him through her pain.
"My lips are sealed."
He squinted at her guileless face.
"Until you want another lemon cake, that is. Don't think I don't know what your game is."
Stefaniya giggled at the byplay.
"Charlie, we can argue over favors later. For now, let's help your dragons."
"Yes, let's."
|:-:|
Malcolm sighed. Rhiain was going to be laid up for a while until that forearm healed. She looked very unhappy.
"Oh, girl. That just doesn't look good. I need to get that belly cleaned off, okay? The Black Lake helps with how cold it is but there's a lot of dirty stuff in the water. Hold still, okay?"
She nodded, still unhappily. Rhiain moaned deep in her chest as Malcolm carefully swabbed a mop loaded with a nasty disinfectant on the wounds. The cauterization helped a good deal, but they had to get in front of any infections.
He hadn't been to see Quiangya yet, but he was sure that she wasn't injured as the other three were. There had been a distracted notice taken of the new dragons that showed up somehow, and maybe she was seeing to them. It would help to find out what they wanted here.
As far as the dragon he was working on now, at least Rhiain was really sweet-tempered, for a dragon. Maybe he could enlist some help with the new dragons to help with Tessaies.
|:-:|
Professor McGonagall hustled as quickly as she could to the Dragon's Lectern. There had been a Patronus message from the Headmaster that there was a dragon in charge of the group that he needed her to go meet. When she got there, she was a bit surprised. Kirsa was there, directing a bunch of dragons that looked a lot like her.
"Pardon me. Kirsa, was it?"
The little dragon turned to her.
"That's me! I'm here to help, but don't mind me. I'm giving my children their marching orders." The little dragon leaned in conspiratorially. "They know better than to back-talk me."
The professor could see the humor, despite the circumstances.
"How many are here, Kirsa? And are you in charge of everyone?"
"I am, as I am most familiar with the area and the dragon handlers posted here."
"Of course. Mister Weasley and his partners have found themselves with a lot of sudden work."
The little dragon drooped a bit.
"Yes, and that's a terrible thing. Don't worry, we will find out why what happened had to occur. Would you like to meet the others?"
Professor McGonagall was a bit concerned, but she wasn't a lioness for nothing.
"Of course, Kirsa. Please lead on."
The little dragon bounced off the Lectern, fizzing with energy. She lead her companion over to one of the largest Hungarian Horntails she had ever seen in her life.
"Professor McGonagall, this is Domir. He is one of Tessaies' older children, and is what you would term a Healer."
McGonagall bowed to the huge dragon, who returned the courtesy.
"Welcome to Hogwarts, Domir. If only it was for a happier reason."
"Thank you, Professor. I agree. I and my assistants were in the rotation for a lecturing slot later in the year, at least."
The translated voice was the deepest she'd ever heard and she could feel her bones rattle as he spoke.
"I won't keep you, as I'm sure you have much you wish to do. Would you like to consult with our Healer for any reason?"
"Actually, I would, although the actual Healing work would be done outside of her training. Still, it never hurts to pick up knowledge if it means that it could help someone in need."
"That's a very wonderful thing for a Healer to say. Please excuse me. I have more that I have to greet."
"Of course, Professor. I will send a message later."
The rest of the greetings went smoothly. There was an offer of draconic security dragons lead by a Russian Zmei dragon with three heads. The middle head was in charge and he was named Pavel. The other two heads had tongue-twister names, and Professor McGonagall couldn't help but wonder if she was being pranked even as she accepted their help.
There was a Norwegian Ridgeback named Snorre who was a bluff and hearty sort. He was the one that had come to handle the administrative things that Tessaies wouldn't be able to while she recovered.
Another Swedish Short-Snout was here to make sure that Domir got what he needed to do his work. It sounded a lot like something Snorre would handle as a matter of course, but Kirsa assured her that Oskar knew what he was doing, even if he was a bit grumpy about it at times. There was a separation between the healing aspects and whatever dragons consider administration.
The last was a Hebridean Black. He was blind in one eye and was named Jack. This seemed to be a rather pedestrian name, but Professor McGonagall figured that she wasn't one to judge. Besides, the translation charm matched her own Scottish accent and she found herself slipping into Scots. Jack answered in kind, and they got along very well.
Kirsa noted that he was there since he was an educator and wanted to find out what two-leg schools did. It would be something to distract the injured dragons as they recovered, as he wanted to get their insights from having the Dragon Lectern here.
Professor McGonagall wondered if she had enough wee drams available to compare notes with Jack. It was something she never thought she would be doing when she got up that morning.
|:-:|
Sirius Black looked at Madam Bones later that night as they sat in the Great Hall. There was still all kinds of parchmentwork to finish and things left still to do, but the group had decided to stop for a bit and eat. It was going to be a late night for almost everyone.
"Well, Amy, what do you think?"
"I think I need a drink."
"I think I do too."
"You're supposed to be in custody, meaning no drinks."
"Maybe, but considering what you know and what's happened today, could you blame me?"
"No. I'll see if Dumbledore still has that bottle of brandy."
"Good idea, but stay away from the lemon drops."
She rolled her eyes at him, but stayed away from the lemon drops.
