Last time...

She looked at the broken pieces left behind, and wondered if magical mirrors felt pain. Maybe then it would know what her life felt like. There was an odd lumpy red rock in the ruins of the mirror, which reminded her of the grubby package Hagrid had had to get before she'd convinced him to wait at the Leaky for her, and she knew exactly what to do with it. Wrapping up the grubby little thing, she securely knotted it, and made for her room. One hastily written note, and suddenly Hedwig was at her window waiting for her.

The note?

Maybe don't let other people rummage through your unmentionables, Flamel .

She finds solace in her books, and doesn't say a word about it when Hermione comes back from break.

Chapter 4

When Ron saw that Hera was reading Hogwarts: A History at breakfast in the Great Hall, he suspected that Hermione had finally gotten to her with her intense love of books. He wasn't stupid. Hera had been seen with more than her fair share of books, but they were usually much thinner than the ones Hermione liked to read. He just doesn't understand what would interest her in such a book, and put it out of his mind as one of those weird quirks girls tended to have, and got back to his food. Later, he would look back on this moment, and think that maybe he should have paid better attention to what she was doing.

The next morning greeted everyone with a rather different view of the Great Hall for breakfast, as the banners and usual House decorations had been altered sometime during the night. Slytherin's House colours had been changed from a cool green and silver to a warm green and gold. Ravenclaw kept their blue, but there were red and white accents now. Hufflepuff's colours had changed to black and red with yellow accents. Gryffindor's colours didn't technically change, however their scarlet red and gold were now had quite the metallic sheen.

Whatever spell was on it was enough to change the accents of even the Hogwarts uniforms, and some of the teacher's clothing as soon as they walked into the Great Hall. Flitwick looked downright patriotic, beaming proudly at the handiwork. McGonagall looked like she didn't know whether to be impressed or annoyed, but she was wearing now metallic looking scarlet red robes that shimmered with gold in the right light. Sprout's wardrobe had completely changed from the earthy colours she usually wore, and now sported black and red robes with yellow trim, which somehow made her look a lot more intimidating and mightily formidable; her gleeful smile and the light in her eyes did nothing to dampen that affect. Snape's robes turned to a more black forest green with gold buttons, and though he scowled on principle, Hera could see that he carefully inspected the work with something akin to pride.

"My compliments to whoever performed this ingenious bit of magic, though I confess myself feeling a little left out on the wardrobe change." Dumbledore announced, and then looked down at his own robes which at that moment became a combination of everything. He grinned. "Ah, I see I was mistaken! Carry on!"

Later on in the staff room…

"I'm half tempted to keep things this way." Albus mused, admiring the handiwork on his robes as he entered the room.

"Albus, you can't possibly be serious." Minerva objected, stalking after him.

"Your smile betrays you, Minnie." He teased, not even looking up.

"What I want to know is who did it?" Pomona wondered, following them in.

"Marvelous bit of charm work, I must say. Nothing complicated, but strong." Filius noted, also admiring his robes.

"Five galleons says it was Potter." Severus proposed when he entered, closing the door behind him.

Minerva huffed. "Severus, you can not simply blame Miss Potter for everything."

"She was the only one that didn't look truly surprised, and I would know that smirk anywhere." He pointed out logically. "It's only a simple colour changing charm. Any First Year could do it. It's just that no one's ever dared."

"My money is on the Weasley twins." Pomona decided. "Those two have been giving Minnie trouble for ages."

"There's a few in my house I would suspect." Flitwick countered. "Are we really betting?"

"How else would we survive the year?" Severus asked with a sardonic drawl, before they all descended into chuckles.

"What would the students say if they could see us now?" Minerva wondered in amusement. "Especially you, Severus."

"Easy." He replied, his own mischievous grin spreading across his face. "None of them would ever believe you."

...

Eventually they did find the focal point for the spell, an anchor that powered the spell without draining someone's magic, as it was amplified by the ambient magic in the air. It was hidden underneath the Head Table, where no one would think to look. Once it was deactivated, everything went back to normal…until a week later when it started back up again. This time the device was hidden on the back of the Headmaster's chair. Each time it was found and deactivated, another one took its place within the week, each time in a more and more unlikely place. It was only when Filius suggested the possibility of a localized Gemino charm on a time delay that they found the main one hidden in the most unlikely of places; the underside of Severus' chair at the Head Table.

"Potter, I will need you to stay after class." Severus ordered.

She grimaced, but nodded without a word, waiting by his desk as the others left. Weasley and Granger would be waiting just outside, he knew. The Slytherin first-years all snickered as they passed by. He really hoped this new batch learned subtlety at some point, because this amount of the sheer lack of it was insulting to the House. While he loved his godson, he was also aware that Draco was one of the worst of the bunch; no subtlety, that boy.

When everyone was gone, he noted what he could. She stood in front of the desk, clearly uncomfortable with whatever situation she thought she was in. Carefully, Severus placed the apparatus they'd found that had controlled the whole House colour scheme onto the desk. Whatever subtlety she'd managed was gone the second she saw it. Instantly, she'd tensed before breaking out into a small shy smile, though that was little better than the grimace she'd had before.

"If I'd had any lingering doubts as to who made this, I don't anymore." Severus stated coolly. "I'm surprised you were able to keep it secret this long."

"Helps when you don't tell anyone what you're planning, or brag about it after." Potter admitted, quietly.

"This is not the first prank I have noticed in regards to you." He added. She stiffened as if she hadn't expected him to notice, and to be fair no one else had noticed but him. "Every so called prank has been harmless, even uplifting to the parties involved, but should that change…Your father was much the same, him and his friends, great lovers of what they referred to as pranks, used any excuse to cause mischief, humiliate anyone for a laugh."

She clinched her fists at her sides, but didn't lash out. A surprise. He would have expected her to defend the man, though she had not known him.

"You're the only one I know of that won't give me platitudes about what a great man he was." She remarked quietly, instead of the angry defense he'd expected.

"You will hear no such platitudes from me." Severus stated acerbically. "Many of his pranks harmed others, or humiliated them. We're lucky no one died."

Testing the limits of the Vow, I see – His thoughts remind him.

"I don't…I don't want to humiliate anyone. I don't like bullies." She insisted, seeming to shrink in on herself, and hesitated. "Can I…Can I have that back, Professor?"

"I suppose." Severus agreed with reluctance and distaste. He was not about to appear nice. "You did no harm with it, and Professor Flitwick will demand to speak with you about it at some later point in time. When he does, tell him I said to pay up. Now get out of my sight. You don't want to have points docked because you were late for class."

The girl reached out with a shaky hand, took back the small apparatus, and made to leave. She was almost to the door when she hesitated again, and turned back to him.

"I know that he died trying to protect me, that mum gave her life to save mine, but I also know that bad people can do good things, and that good people can do bad things." She stated, not quite looking him in the eye. "People are rarely all good or bad. Thank you, Professor, for telling me that my father was more than only the hero people paint him to be."

And with that she quickly left the room, and Severus was left in confusion once again. Wasn't she supposed to hate him? He'd literally just insulted her father to her. He'd not been pleasant or nice on purpose, could not be seen as showing favor or kindness, and yet she did not glare at him with hatred in her eyes. The rest of the day was not enough to rid him of his confusion, though he was surprised when Filius actually handed him the galleons. Considering the half goblin was laughing while he did so, Severus would call it a win.

While her two friends were still obsessed with finding out who Flamel was, and what was in the third corridor, Hera didn't have the heart to tell them she'd already taken care of it. Fluffy was the biggest cuddle monger. She's more interested in why she keeps finding Hagrid in the library, as he had never seemed the most studious of sorts before now. She's kept a steady stream of visits, finding herself oddly at ease in his presence, so she can tell when he's lying. It does help that his tells are terribly obvious. She could fleece him in poker or something, she knows it; she's done it already, not that they ever played for money.

When she visits him next, Hermione and Ron come with her, the first thing that they notice is that the window shades are closed. The second thing they notice is how bloody hot it gets when Hagrid opens the door to let them in. There is a raging inferno inside his fireplace. Hera feels like she's gonna die just standing there, suddenly feeling dizzy and faint, though it doesn't seem to affect Ron or Hermione in quite the same way. Hagrid makes them some tea, which everyone accepts, and some stout sandwiches, which only Hera accepts.

"Hagrid, how did you get a dragon egg?" Hera asked, as she stared into the fire where the egg rested, interrupting Hermione's rather brilliant manipulative attempt to interrogate Hagrid. She wasn't much for conversation this time, what with how faint she was feeling due to the heat. "What kind is it?"

"A Norwegian Ridge-back. They're rare, them." Hagrid beamed proudly. "Won him in a card game."

"Hagrid, I regularly trounce you at cards. There's no way you won this without them getting something in return." Hera pointed out, not unkindly. "What did they want?"

"Nuth'n." Hagrid huffed, before going over to stoke the fire. "I just talked about my Groundskeeper duties, taking care of in'erestin creatures, know'n how ter handle 'em, that kind o' thing."

Hera sighed, knowing that it was no use trying to head this off at the pass, when she hears Hermione's quiet objection. "Hagrid, you live in a wooden hut."

Her little rules lawyer was going up, Hera cooed in her mind, Hermione hadn't even mentioned that owning a dragon was illegal.

"Hermione, know that when I say this, it's with all the love in the world, but you're insane." Hera declared, sliding the timetable away from herself. "There aren't enough hours in the day."

"It's not that bad." Hermione insisted, sliding the timetable back across the table to her.

Ron picks it up instead, and pales significantly. "You've only got three minutes to use the loo!"

"Don't forget, meal times are cut in half." Hera reminded him, pointing to a specific spot on the timetable. "Unless we study while we're eating."

"Is that what that means?" Ron asked, lowering his voice. She nodded, and Ron started looking like he'd never know happiness again.

"I was hoping it would get Ron to stop spraying food everywhere if he had to take care of his school books while he ate." Hermione huffed, crossing her arms, glaring at him. "I have asked you to chew with your mouth closed, because I don't like getting sprayed with food bits, and I doubt anyone else does either."

The extra homework was really getting to them all, hence the study schedules Hermione was trying to push on them. Ron knew his table manners were bad, but this was the first time he'd been able to spend away from his mother, and was using it for this tiny act of rebellion; right along with neglecting his homework. Hera could understand, as she was doing the same thing by not hiding that she's actually smart. It took a lot of work to pretend to be as intellectually challenged as Dudley. The difference was that Ronald wasn't dumb, he was just lazy.

"My table manners are none of your business!" Ron snapped in embarrassment, his face becoming nearly as red as his hair.

"They are when the food that doesn't land in your mouth lands in my hair." Hermione drawled, deadpan.

"Study habits!" Hera called out, cutting through their bickering with a clap of her hands, and ended up drawing the attention of others in the library. When everyone looked away again, she calmly continued. "Hermione, while I agree that studying is important, not everyone learns the same way you do. My brain needs breaks and distractions, and Ron's needs food to motivate him."

"Oi!" Ron objected, but it was without any vehemence.

"He'll be the tallest Weasley, I swear. He's already so high up." Hera teased. Hermione snickered at her antics. "That's where all the food goes."

"Alright, I'll lay off, even though I was only trying to do it for your own good. I'm not your mum." Hermione sighed, though Hera did not openly relax. She wasn't that foolish.

"Ron, since Hermione has made this concession, you should make one too." Hera suggested, then snapped her fingers in an aha moment. "I know! Since she won't be nagging you about studying anymore, you can agree not to beg for copies of her homework if you fall behind in your studies. Makes everything all nice and fair. Wouldn't want her to think we're only after her friendship for her brains."

The look of surprise on Hermione's face, as well as the sheer dread on Ron's, was totally worth it.

It's hatching

The three took a look at the note, then each other, a bracing sigh on each of their lips. They'd been trying for weeks to get that man to realize that raising a dragon was not only a bad idea, it was highly unrealistic. Hagrid lived in a wooden hut. Eventually, someone would notice the dragon, probably when it burned his hut to the ground with him in it. Still, the chance to watch the hatching of a baby dragon was too good to pass up, and so after Herbology class the three Gryffindors went down to Hagrid's hut.

"Come in! Come in! It's nearly out!" Hagrid beamed proudly, and they bustled into the hut to gather around the table he'd set the egg on.

There were deep cracks in it, and some kind of clicking noise was coming from within. Despite the insistence that this was a bad idea, all waited with baited breath for what was about to happen. All at once, there was a great crack, and then the dragon flopped out onto the table in an unceremonious heap. Black scales covered its scrawny body, a small thing in comparison to how large its spiky wings were. Hera likened it to a crumpled umbrella, if said umbrella were to have great glowing orange eyes.

"Isn't he beautiful?" Hagrid murmured, reaching out to pet it. The baby dragon snapped at his fingers and hissed. "Bless him! He knows his mummy!"

"You'd think he'd be a little nicer to his mummy." Hera muttered under her breath, and the dragon snapped its attention to her.

~A Speaker!~

"Uh…Yes?" Hera hesitated, uncertain of why the rest of the room suddenly froze.

~Tell this large man that I will not be nice! He stole me from my nest!~

"He did not. He rescued you from the one who stole you from your nest, but he does not know how to return you to it. He does not know where it is." Hera pointed out. "He has been taking care of you."

~He's been trying to be my mummy?~

"He means well." Hera shrugged; and with that the dragon scrambled over to Hagrid, and crawl up into his arms, nestling into his beard. The man looked ready to cry out of sheer happiness, even if he was occasionally giving Hera wary glances.

~Tell him he's warm, and kind, and that my name is Norbert~

"He says you're warm, and kind, and his name is Norbert." Hera stated, looking to Hagrid, only to get a bit of sparks blown at her. "Her. Her name is Norbert."

"You can speak to dragons?" Ron asked cluelessly.

"I guess? I wouldn't know. This is kind of the first and only dragon I've ever seen, Ron." Hera felt the need to point out.

"Wicked!" He exclaimed. "Charlie would be so jealous!"

"This was fun, Hagrid, but we should go. We don't have long till next class." Hermione stated, businesslike now. "Take care, Norbert!"

and out the door she pushed them.

"That dragon is going to grow the size of his hut in at least three weeks, if not sooner." Hermione said, once she had them out. "What are we going to do?"

"We could send a letter to Charlie. He works at that reserve in Romania, present it as an option to Hagrid after class." Ron suggested.

It was the only thing they could think of.