Chapter 31

Introspections

Harry sat quietly on one of the benches around the Black Lake, thinking about everything that had happened ever since he had stepped into the arena for the First Task. He still didn't believe a quarter of it, it seemed. The whole thing with the Goblet, to begin with. It was getting old to have challenges like this every year that it seemed hardly anyone else in the school did. Well, the truth be told, it got old the first year no matter what he said to anyone. Even to himself during the deepest and darkest hours of the night.

He could lie to himself, but not successfully. The reminder of the Witness Perch and its fire was on his mind now when thinking about lies, no matter what else might have been there before the dragons started holding court.

Hermione was elsewhere at the moment, having been spirited away by an unusually talkative Luna. He chuckled at the mental wordplay, considering where he was. A few absently-cast warming charms kept him somewhat comfortable, as he didn't trust his skill at both warming and cushioning charms at the same time. Not with everything on his mind right now, no. He didn't want to warm and cushion the wrong surface and have to explain to Madam Pomfrey what he had been doing as she tried to fix the problems it would cause. Or, for that matter, have to explain to a laughing group of Gryffindors what he'd been trying to do. They would want to know what had happened whether he wanted to say or not, and he was fairly sure that somebody ran around in Gryffindor Tower with a list of things that happened to him. Whoever it was probably took a page from the Twins' book and had a lot of bets out on it, too.

Harry considered Luna for a bit. Now there was a surprise. Well, it was always a surprise where she was concerned, but this was more of that than usual. Luna had made friends with Rhiain first of all the dragons, and the Welsh Green had confessed to Tessaies within Harry's hearing that it was out of sheer confusion more than anything else. Rhiain knew what a Snorkack was – crumpled, straight, and bifurcated – but was lost where a Nargle was concerned. The perplexed dragon had looked to Tessaies to help her out.

Tessaies had made the suggestion to talk to the girl, and take Neville with her when she did. Harry wondered if Tessaies was up to something with the suggestion concerning that specific person. It was quite possible. Tessaies should have been a Slytherin with the things that she did sometimes. It wasn't an exact analogy, of course, since she was a dragon after all. Dragons did things their own way. And for that matter, they did things their own way from breed to breed, which didn't always mesh well considering that each way was sometimes very different. He'd overheard Charlie and Malcolm a few times over their Firewhiskey when they'd thought they found a hidden spot.

He couldn't remember if Charlie knew about his invisibility cloak, so resolved to keep that quiet and maybe he could find out more things. The pair got funnier the drunker they got.

No one bothered him on his seat, which he was thankful for. People got on his nerves a lot and he didn't show it, he hoped. There was a corner of his mind that he knew was going to sound a lot like Hermione that was scoffing at his hopeful thought, he realized, and he sighed. Okay, so maybe he did get a bit heated about some things. Some things needed acting upon, he felt. The upcoming Yule Ball and the Second Task needed acting on and he knew what he'd like to do about both of those unwanted activities.

The scoffing in his head got louder and retreated, with the uncomfortably sharp mental image of a stuck-up nose walking away telling him what that corner of his mind thought about that.

Harry sighed, realizing that he couldn't get anything past Hermione even when she wasn't here and he wondered if he really wanted to. That was a thought for another day, since there was too much already spawned in his headspace to think about as it were. He went back to his first thought, waiting for him to pick up the dropped reins.

Dragons. Beautiful and scary creatures, but confusing. The muted scoff from the Hermione mental corner reminded that it wasn't just the dragons. There was a cheer from another corner that he realized, with mounting horror, that sounded a lot like a blend of Kirsa and Annika. Harry did not know what to make of that and he wondered if he was going to carry around a bunch of dragons in his head now along with everything else.

The boy shifted a bit on his hard stone bench and realized that his subconscious was trying to help him with something that had nothing to do with what he was trying to think about. Well, it would have to wait. If he'd stayed in the Common Room with all the noise, arguments, jokes, pranks, talking and what-have-you, there would have been far more intruding and he wouldn't have even had space for that push to occur.

He hadn't exactly been asked to be taken care of by a dragon, but he was game for it. It had to beat living at the Dursleys. Magic did some odd things and this was an odd thing for sure. Had anyone asked him about being adopted by a dragon last year or even two years ago, after the fight with the basilisk, he would have laughed in the questioner's face. It was such a strange idea.

For a moment, he had a mental image that called up a frazzled Tessaies in an apron that had some frays and scorches and standing in front of a stove while cooking breakfast. Another image had her calling him to come down the stairs at the Dursleys for dinner and making him use his table manners. Yet another had him getting lectured about some wrongdoing.

Harry shook his head. That was probably something that he didn't need to relate to any of the dragons, or there might be some uncomfortable conversations in his future. Annika was already looking at him strangely at times and he wondered if her stronger mental talent had clued her in.

Or other things, if the Weasley Twins decided to do something about it. The Weasley Family Meeting had been a shock for everyone. Arthur had even looked dangerous for a moment or two, before he'd drawn that placid cloak around him that everyone saw. Harry had been wiped out from the emotional display, but he couldn't help but see the Twins gulp in unison and shiver at the sight. There hadn't been time to see other reactions.

A sudden stray thought forced its way to the forefront, and he realized that if a Muggleborn somehow introduced Annika to old television shows, they'd all suffer. Harry grimaced at that thought, too. He didn't want to think about Annika getting addicted to whatever was out there now and deciding to act it out. Her attempts to sing were all bad enough. A dragon trying to dress up in a costume was a terrible, terrible idea.

Tessaies did her best, Harry knew. There were some things that didn't translate too well between dragons and humans, but she evidently remembered the other humans that she had adopted before, whoever they had been. He didn't ask her about them, as he wasn't sure that he had the right to. It made for smoother sailing, or maybe flying was the better word, than he'd thought. He just wasn't sure about her taste for bloody livers. The other dragons had taken him under their wings, too, metaphorically and literally.

The aftermath of the First Task, as least where he stood with Hermione, had been both a surprise and a relief. Tessaies had been forthright about that and must not have been inclined to waste time with it. Dragons did things their own way. He was sure that Charlie could have told him that several times by now if he hadn't figured that out.

Speaking of Tessaies, there was a distinctive thudding sound that signaled her footsteps approaching. All dragons had a hefty tread, but other than Domir, Tessaies was the heaviest. She also seemed to step heavier on her left rear leg as part of her pace, which gave her a more distinct sound. It also seemed to be slower than usual, which seemed strange and he wondered what she was doing.

Harry looked up from his seat to try to see where she was coming from, but for now all he could see was the spikes on her back approaching. He could hear her conversing with someone – a human -as she walked slower than usual, and Harry wondered who it was and what they thought about the sight of those murderously sharp spikes on her tail.

He waited. Harry couldn't see whoever it was she was talking to. He could hear the tone as they got closer, and it sounded like whoever it was getting a stern lecture. Not the fire-and-brimstone lecture one would expect from dragons, though. He'd heard Kirsa dispense a few of those to her brood, and had added to his rapidly growing store of imprecations. Harry was pretty sure that the other students and possibly the Professors had the same store.

Some of them would have to take some thought to translate into English from Parseltongue. Those would have to be used with waiting wand in hand. He didn't tell any of the dragons that he overheard those, but he was fairly sure that Jack knew. The old one-eyed dragon seemed to give less than a flaming wet fart in a high wind who heard him, although he did moderate himself somewhat around the mother dragons.

'Somewhat,' as Harry had seen Professor McGonagall give him Unamused Stare Number Three a couple of times. Jack ignored it, of course. He ignored a lot of Stares and when Professor McGonagall wasn't looking, Harry had seen him crack a draconic smile. Harry wasn't the only one to think that Jack was deliberately winding her up, but the question was why. He pretended to keep the McGonagall Stares on his blind side a lot. Harry was sure that he switched the sides he wore his eyepatch on from time to time, even though he really couldn't see out of that eye.

Nobody was too sure about that, though, and didn't want to speculate. They just waited to see what he'd do next.

"… be careful carrying that," came Tessaies' voice. "Now, back to our conversation. There are things that I've noticed you doing that does not fit well with the name you carry. Names have meaning and often power of their own. They also have what you imbue them with by your own actions. You have heard of what you humans called 'reputation,' correct?"

There was a response that Harry couldn't hear, but her much more sensitive hearing obviously could.

"Your reputation is what you do. It's what others perceive of you."

Harry wondered who she was talking to. Maybe a Hufflepuff that had offered to carry something somewhere for her. Several of them had spent time with her to hear what she had to say to them. Kirsa was popular for much the same, as was Annika. One was down to earth and the other was entertaining, although the second part sometimes gave Tessaies heartburn when she heard about it.

Harry chuckled to himself at the memory of the last time. The dragon mother had sighed a deep, deep sigh and raised both forepaws to cover her snout. There had been something muttered that Harry couldn't hear and the Translation Charm didn't catch. It was funny to see that, but he wasn't about to tell her that. He didn't want to ask her what she said, either. Harry couldn't decide at that moment whether she would tell him, and if he would regret it.

Trying to listen to the approaching conversation without being obvious about it, he wondered who she was talking to and realized that it was something that maybe he needed to take to heart himself. Whoever it was seemed to agree with Tessaies' point.

It was probably wise to, Harry thought. Especially if there was a multiple-ton dragon standing right there saying it.

"Your reputation can help you or hurt you in the things that you want to do as you go about the days, weeks, months, and years of your life. The things that you do one day might years later make something else that you want to do easier or harder," Tessaies said, in the decreasing distance.

There must have been agreement again, since there was a pause. It was still too soft for him to hear. Harry agreed with what she'd said and realized that maybe he needed to keep it in mind himself.

"Actions speak louder than words."

That was something else he agreed with.

"You should spend some time with Pavel. He has quite a bit of experience with conflicts such as this. His insight would be very helpful."

His curiosity was ramping up. Who was she talking to? There was another mumble that he couldn't hear. The voices were getting closer but still not close enough for him to be able to tell who she was talking to. The dragons were usually far more patient with the children at Hogwarts than they were with the adults, and Pavel was an experience to himself. If whoever this was that Tessaies was talking to was suggesting this, it had to be something that she thought was necessary. Pavel was somewhat stricter that he appeared from the interactions with the others, so maybe this person was in need of something draconic and long-lasting.

"Yes, but think about this: sometimes you have to step back to see everything when you're too close to something. That also lets you see something from a different perspective, too. It's very different seeing things from the air on your broom than seeing the same thing on the ground, true?"

Tessaies sounded a bit impatient and a bit tired, but whoever she was talking to apparently didn't notice. The mumble Harry could barely hear sounded thoughtful, at least somewhat.

"Good. Now, off with you. Find Pavel. I'll let him know about this conversation – he'll be happy to have an apprentice."

The confusion in the voice matched Harry's sudden thoughts.

"No, not an apprentice as you humans use the word. Apprentices as we dragons use the word are those younger dragons that partake of an older dragon's life's wisdom. It's a part of growing up and I'm going to say this right now. You have a lot of growing up to do that needs doing, and I've decided to help you do that. What you're carrying will help you. As for me, I have somewhere to be."

Tessaies turned the corner with the other person. Harry's eyes went wide.

"Malfoy?"

The blond's eyes were as surprised as his own, even as he carried a Short-Snout dragon egg in his hands.

"Potter?"

|:-:|

There was a moment of silence in the area that Whopnehr had set aside for his 'chambers.' Everyone had been released from the courtroom in a short recess before the jury appeared, and the old dragon had taken advantage of the opportunity to get a snack and check his messages. The magicals knew that the dragons somehow communicated with each other but there wasn't a good feel for the way they did it. There wasn't a lot that was said on that process, even though they were being quite helpful. Even the younger ones didn't say anything to the curious humans, but did say that it was something that was taught to them once they reached a certain age.

Whopnehr sighed. He was feeling every bit of his advanced age and cases like this greatly offended his legal mind. It didn't matter to him that the defendant wasn't even a dragon. The particulars of the case were something that he frankly felt offended about, but Whopnehr didn't let it affect his impartiality as the Honorable Battle Draco of this court. He had heard the evidence given, as had the jury. The galleries had seemed to be surprised at what was revealed, too.

He chuckled, in the privacy of his chambers. What discussions had been going on in the jury room? It was a good thing that like all draconic jury rooms, it was spacious, runically sound-proofed, and most importantly, flame-proofed. As a young dragon, he'd had to serve on a jury or two. In fact, it was what had sparked his interest in the law. Seeing the mechanics of a trial had set a young Whopnehr to thinking about that sort of thing.

Seeing one of the jurors get roasted – literally – for expressing a less-than-professional view about one of the trials' plaintiffs had been entertaining, once he'd gotten himself out of the way. That had resulted in a mistrial. The later trial had ruled for the defendant, and the other plaintiff had been found to be attempting to cheat. That hadn't ended well for him or his line. Once the court had finished with the indignation getting expressed, the judge had started with an impressive display of anger. Several in the galleries back then had to be dragged out, having fainted in shock at the display.

The old dragon dragged his mind back from being in the past and thought a bit more about the current case. It was terrible, to be fair. Had the defendant been a dragon in the same or roughly some similar situation, there would have been war. He wasn't totally sure that the Treaty would have much influence on Sirius Black if there hadn't been the magically-sworn Godfather Oath and the Declaration of Contention, to boot. However, Magic worked in its own way and was sometimes as confusing to dragons as it was to humans. He didn't admit that to the humans any more than any other dragon, he hoped.

Whopnehr hoped that there weren't any other surprises. He wanted to get this over and done with, and in the best interests of the law. After that, he would be free to check up on some other things that bothered him that didn't completely involve the defendant in this case. There had been rumbles about things over the last few decades and most of the century to a lesser degree that had him concerned.

He licked his talons clean and heaved his bulk up with a groan to go back to the courtroom. The older he got, the harder it was to do things and he missed being able to do them. He missed being young enough to do them, too, but that was another matter entirely.

|:-:|

The chatter in the courtroom had increased as the inhabitants, both human and draconic, found their places. Since the judge and the jury both hadn't arrived yet, they felt that there was opportunity to converse.

"Ernie, what do you think about all this?" one slightly overweight wizard asked his seatmate.

"Surprise, mostly. Those dragons put on a good show so far, haven't they?" came the response.

Ernie's companion thought about that with a slight frown.

"I don't know if I'd call it a 'good show' as I'd say justice was finally being served, Frank."

Frank looked over.

"Ernie?"

Ernie had a matching frown on his face.

"Well, look at it. For the longest time, we've thought that Sirius Black was a right bastard in betraying the Potters, right?"

"Yeah, and…"

"And the dragons have gone to all this trouble to give him a trial when they heard he didn't have one in the first place, right?"

"We're sure that he didn't?" There was a note of unsure contemplation on Frank's face. Ernie stared at him with a bit of frustration on his face.

"What? You didn't see his testimony?"

"No, I missed it. Annie was sick that day. The Daily Prophet said it was a load of hogwash, basically."

"Frank! Are you daft? Sirius Black was put on that stand, or perch, or whatever they call it. He was asked the questions, and he didn't get burnt to a crisp like that Bitterberry fellow or whatever his name was."

"Not even a smolder?" Frank sounded hopeful.

"No, not a bit."

"No smoke at all?"

"None. He said what he said and sat there, waiting for the next question. Just like Moody did that time. I know you saw that, since you were seated right next to me and tried your damnedest to disappear every time he looked your way."

Frank shuddered a bit.

"Moody gives me the willies with that eye."

Ernie shook his head at his old friend, faint irritation in the motion.

"I'm starting to think you have something hidden away you don't want him to find."

The reply was cut off by the arrival of the judge. The golden-horned bailiff jumped to her feet.

"All rise!" she barked, with a distinct snarl in the words.

Everyone rose from their seats, some quicker than others. Whopnehr took his time and arranged himself on his pad with some grunts of discomfort that many of the older viewers in the public galleries empathized with. Some wry looks were exchanged, along with grimaces that said they knew exactly the things that the old dragon was going through. After all, several of them did the same thing.

It took a few moments. Everyone watching with human eyes could see that Whopnehr tapped a talon on a couple of draconic runes, but didn't know what those signified. Domir could, and a few other dragons could. The healer decided that after this, he would visit the old dragon and prescribe something for his aches.

For his part, Whopnehr eyed the group arrayed around him. Dahne sat, appearing more relaxed than the old dragon knew him to be. Perreh was curled up next to Mister Black, also appearing not to have a care in the world. The various onlookers seemed to have a bit of… what was it… impatience for the court to get on with it. They seemed to be somewhat aggravated – but for what reason, he couldn't fathom.

Well, there was a cure for that. His bailiff could be irritable, but he was flamed if he was going to put up with more than that. Besides, he'd gotten used to her.

"There will be order," he growled out. There was a bit of private amusement at seeing how the humans snapped to attention. "Be seated."

There was more amusement, carefully hidden, as he watched the humans practically dive for their seats.

"This court is in session. The jury will be seated in a few moments in order for the rest of us to hear their verdict. Before then, I want to make a few… points."

He tapped the razor-sharp talon on his stone, emphasizing without directly referring to the very sharp point on the end of that talon and the other talons in possession of every other dragon in the group.

"When the jury arrives, there will be order. You will sit quietly and await whatever verdict that they have to deliver to us. When the verdict is delivered – whatever it is - there will be no argument for or against according to your private thoughts. As with the Witness Perch, a dragon court has no room for anything but the truth. My own reputation as an Honorable Battle Draco and the many, many years I have sat my position has no room for anything but the truth."

He stopped to look at them.

"Should Mister Sirius Orion Black be found innocent, he will be immediately released with the expectation that anyone who disagrees with the verdict hereby disagrees with the whole Dragon Nation. We call ourselves something else, of course, but for the purposes of what I have to say the term is appropriate."

Whopnehr saw that Dahne and Perreh both nodded in agreement. Those two had been arguing against each other the moment both hatched, it seemed, but for things like this there was definite agreement between them.

"It follows that if anyone should be so foolish as to take matters into their own hands after this court is concluded with a finding of innocence, then that will be the same as slighting the court and its officers. I warn you here and others elsewhere: don't make that supremely idiotic mistake."

It seemed that for now, no one would.

"On the other side, should Mister Sirius Orion Black be found guilty, he will immediately and permanently face draconic justice before the sun sets. Such has no humanistic concepts as 'appeal.' Once decided, so shall it be."

The old dragon could see that the defendant seemed concerned at his words, if the suddenly paling face meant anything.

"There will be no questions directed to the jury, no disruptions that would impede the jury's assigned task, nothing that would raise my ire. Is this understood by all present?"

There was a general murmur, and Whopnehr sighed.

"It may be my age, but I didn't seem to hear that. Is this understood?" There was a bit of fire in his words.

Between them, Dahne and Perreh traded smug looks. The old dragon heard everything in his court. They were not fooled in the least, having had experience of Whopnehr doing that and dealing out some creative sanctions for intemperate words.

"This is my court. It may be located on the grounds of Hogwarts, a human place of magical learning, but regardless of location my word is law. I will have no disruptions of any kind or any level, or I will have measures taken to quell said disruptions. Remember this."

The old dragon eyed the gathering for a moment.

"Bailiff, bring in the jury and seat them."

Mirela snorted to herself at the expressions on some of the humans. She didn't have much of a sense of humor but this was something that she did find funny. She nodded to Whopnehr, acknowledging his order and shuffled out to get the jury.

It took a few minutes, and there was some sort of argument that could be heard from wherever she left. Plenty of worried looks were traded, but too many were mindful of what the old dragon had said to say or do anything other than be completely silent.

Soon the jury was seated, or the closest it could come with a number of dragons in a relatively confined area could be. They seemed to be anxious to say their piece and get it over with. Whopnehr spared them a glance.

"Jury, do you have a verdict?"

The Fleur-de-Nuit stood up, the same frown that had been on her face still there.

"We do, Your Honorable Battle Draco."

"Are you prepared to release it?"

"We are."

"Good." Whopnehr looked at the assembled group of onlookers. "A note: We do not use 'mitigating factors' as human courts do. A defendant is either guilty or not guilty, and any punishment has nothing to modify it."

With another bit of private amusement, he saw that somehow the defendant was even whiter than before. The old dragon would swear that even the man's hair was hanging lower. He waved a forepaw at the Fleur-de-Nuit.

"Jury, you may proceed."

She nodded, steam wafting delicately from her nostrils.

"Your Honorable Battle Draco, we looked at the charges of Murder of a number of non-magical humans, the Murder of a wizard, the Betrayal of family members considering the then-present Godfather Oath binding the defendant, and the confinement thus far. Or rather, the unfiled charges or such similar in the magical justice system. We reviewed the testimony given in this court. We asked for the evidence developed before the confinement of Sirius Orion Black and found that no such existed, just as the so-called charges failed to exist."

A few of the reporters perked up at that. Dragons could ask for Wizengamot proceedings? How? The questions were put to the side as the rather pretty dragon went on.

"We confirmed that there had been no original trial at all, and thus proceeded. As such, we weighed the evidence given, the presence of a Declaration of Contention, the results of that, and the case presented."

There was a moment of silence as the dragon looked back at her fellow jurors. Each nodded at her and she turned back to face Whopnehr.

"We find that the defendant, Sirius Orion Black, is not guilty of all charges detailed here. He is to be known as innocent of Betrayal in both human and draconic gatherings. He is to be considered innocent of Murder in both human and draconic gatherings. He is to be considered Righteous in his Contention, now and evermore. He is to be considered Free, to conduct his business wherever he sees fit within the bounds of the Law."

There was a moment's pause, and she remained standing. Whopnehr nodded for her to continue, and both Perreh and Dahne could see a gleam in his eye at the jury foredragon's mention of the Law. Both realized that the old dragon had realized something before either of them had.

"We find that the actions of the human Ministry of Magic in confining an innocent man without means of escaping those foul soulwicks – for whatever nefarious purpose – to be reprehensible. We will recommend that as Sirius Orion Black is the Righteously Contended family of a ward of the Mother Eminence of Hogwarts, that he be allowed the services of a double flight of Investigators to audit any and all actions of the entity known as the Ministry of Magic from the date of 31 October, 1981 to today's date, and extending for a period of four of the human's years or as we term it 'one forepaw.' Any discrepancies are to be brought to the attention of this court."

She stumbled a bit over the unfamiliar date, but no one in the galleries noticed in their shock.

"We do not have many if any suitable healing facilities for Mister Black as we are dragons and not humans, but would like to ask Maester Chirurgeon Draco Domir for his recommendations on this matter. He is known to have engaged in cross-training during his stay here and would have information suitable for this purpose."

Domir stood up and rumbled out an "Agreed," and sat down again.

"We cannot render a verdict on the mentioned renumerations at this time, but would recommend revisiting this at a later date contingent on the findings of the double flight of Investigators."

She nodded at the old dragon on his perch and hastily sat down, with a less-than-perfectly hidden relieved look on her face. On either side, the Finback and Ampitheare patted her flanks in congratulations for getting through her speech, then went back to looking either bored or grumpy.

There was a slight burst of noise, and Sirius sat frozen in no small amount of surprise. Whopnehr scraped his talons over his stone, watching the screech quieten the others. He thought about the jury's verdict and recommendations.

"So ordered, with following modification: Mister Sirius Orion Black is to be allowed a triple wing of Investigators, to report to Mother Eminence Tessaies at their earliest convenience.

He carefully ignored the exasperated look on her face. Whopnehr wasn't above making her life hard in some ways and he still owed her a few. He looked at the defendant, now exonerated, who at least looked as if some color was returning but still had a huge expression on his lined face that screamed of his disbelief at what had happened.

"Mister Black, you have been found innocent. I recommend that you take this opportunity afforded to you. Several opportunities, if I should be truthful as required in this Court, and make the best of each of them."

Sirius got to his feet.

"Yes, Your Honorable Battle Draco."

He sat down again, very quickly. Others with less consideration for him would have said that he collapsed.

The old dragon looked around, taking his impressions of everyone in the area.

"This court will stand adjourned until the Investigative team have notified me of the results of their work. At that point, we will reconvene to discuss their findings."

The scrape of the old dragon's talons was a bit louder than usual, and everyone winced as he slowly stood up.

Mirela bounced up.

"All rise!"

|:-:|

As the dragons either filed out of the open-air courtroom or simply flew off, one young Ironbelly looked at an older Welsh Green and said, "Do you think that there will be another conclave called?"

"No, not a full conclave, but there will be a small gathering to start with. After that, maybe. This has brought up painful memories."

The Ironbelly nodded. That was too true.

"It's been a long time since I've seen a Contention exercised."

"Same for me, and what a reason for one, too. If it had been some of my dragonets, I'd be upset as well."

"Me too, but I meant that other thing."

The older dragon grimaced, a sight to see on any dragon's face.

"Yes… that other thing. It's been something that needed seeing to for some time now."

They waited for the area to thin out a bit more before continuing to speak in low voices.

"I suppose the best thing to do would be to alert the other Investigators that we have a job to do."

"I agree."

"And Reepi?"

The younger dragon waited for his elder to speak, his attention focused.

"Tell them to put this Umbridge on the list when they talk to Black."

Author Notes:

I've been remiss in posting. Part was being sick – and still am, to some degree – and part is no motivation thanks to that and other burdens. Sorry, people. I'm still plugging away. I've revisited Phantasms of Reality some, too.

I've gotten a lifetime subscription to Microsoft Office Professional as a Christmas present to myself and I've been running this story through it to catch stuff I have issues with (and give Alix33 a break! Thanks!) which helps. As time progresses on and I start to feel better, you'll see changes in the previously-published stuff as I get to it. As much as I like LibreOffice, there are some things that it cannot do as well.

Now to replace my gaming mouse with all the programmable buttons, but that's for in the future…

I'm not going to bother with story stats in this Note. Maybe in the next chapter or two.

For those of my readers that celebrated it, I hope that you've had a Merry Christmas.

Onward!