The Dragon Apprentice

1st of July, 1997.

It was early in the morning. Diagon Alley had yet to wake. Only shopkeepers and early risers were moving about. With determined steps and a strange suitcase in one hand, Kato walked down the marbled steps of Gringotts. He headed straight for a shop seldom visited by the same person more than a few times in their lifetime unless they were careless. Ollivander's was a small cramped shop filled with shelves holding small boxes of wands waiting for their witch or wizard to come in and claim them. Kato wasn't there for a wand that had already been made, however. In his strange suitcase, he had several components that could be turned into a wand. Gabrielle was starting school in a few weeks and he wanted her to have a wand that truly fitted her.

"Ah, you come to me once more, Mr Peverell," Ollivander said. "It would seem that you were correct last time you came so I find it intriguing what else you may provide."

Kato opened his suitcase. "Unlike last time this wand will be the first wand for this person," he said. "I have spent a lot of time thinking on this and I have come to find that three components speak to me. He took out a block of Moonstone, some gleamblossom pistils and amethyst for the pommel. "Just like last time you may keep any excess," he said.

"This isn't even wood," Ollivander said. He had never worked in stone before. It was usually too unforgiving to make Wands out of.

"If you heat the moonstone it will become pliable almost like gold but it won't go liquid," Kato said. "My sister makes armour and swords out of it."

Ollivander nodded slowly. Once again he was set a challenge and he loved it. "When does it need to be done?" he asked.

"I will return on the twenty-eight to pick it up if that is alright with you," Kato said.

Ollivander nodded. "That gives me plenty of time," he said. "Though I would like it if the young witch or wizard came personally in case it doesn't work out."

"Certainly that shouldn't be a problem," Kato said. "I will see you then. Have a good day Mr Ollivander."

"Have a nice trip," Ollivander said calmly in response as Kato headed out. He looked down at the materials. He certainly loved a challenge and young mister Potter was opening his eyes to other ways of making wands.

Kato headed from Diagon Alley to Malfoy Manor. He had an apprentice to pick up. In two days he had a portkey for the Dragon Reserve, and he wanted to get at least some idea of how he would need to teach Draco before then. "Good morning Lord Malfoy," he said as he entered Lucius' study.

Lucius looked up at Kato. He had dark circles under his eyes and looked like he could use some sleep. Whatever the Dark Lord had him doing right now had to be taking a lot out of him. "Draco is with his mother in the Sunroom," Lucius said. He sighed and closed his eyes. "Please take him away from this," he said.

"I'll be dragging him with me on a job I have so we'll be out of the country in two days' time," Kato said. "I'll probably come back towards the end of the month with him for a bit. I have some personal things I want to take care of."

Lucius nodded slowly.

"You need some sleep," Kato said. "Please sleep better. I know he wants a lot to get done, but you won't be any good to anyone if he works you to the bone."

"If I could just find Karkaroff I'd be fine, but the man is slippery. Every time I get close he disappears," Lucius said irritably.

It was obvious that Lucius wasn't quite himself. He usually never lost his composure like this. The last time Kato had seen him in this state he'd been twelve and had just freed Dobby. He reached out and touched one of the inkwells on Lucius' desk. His eyes glowed blue for a moment as he focused his senses on everything that he could remember of Igor Karkaroff. Then he bound the spell to the inkwell. "Every time you try to write with that inkwell it will tell you exactly where to find Karkaroff," he said. "Good luck in your hunt."

Lucius looked after Kato as he headed out of his office. Why hadn't he just asked Kato for help to begin with? He knew that Kato wasn't going to join the Dark Lord, but he didn't care about Karkaroff so he wouldn't have minded helping out. He would have to remember that.

Kato cast a Patronus and sent it off to Moody. "Karkaroff's time is running out. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock." He rounded a corner and headed towards the Sunroom when a door suddenly opened in front of him. A woman with wild black hair and even wilder eyes stepped out of the room and turned to look straight at him. "Now who do we have here? One of Lucius' little dogs," she cackled.

Kato raised an eyebrow. "I would be heedful not to make assumptions that may cost you, Ma'am," he said.

Bellatrix Lestrange smirked. The usual rabble that came into Malfoy Manor had no spark. No backbone. This one was different. "Do you know who I am?" she asked.

"You are the Bellatrix Lestrange convicted for torturing the Longbottoms to insanity," Kato said. "I am Kato Peverell, the man who mended that insanity and put them right again. Which one do you think is harder to do?"

Qozul took his monah's tone of voice as his cue to appear. He moved up on Kato's shoulder and grew in size then he let out a rather majestic roar considering his small size. This woman was irritating Monah; she better stop if she knew what was good for her.

Bellatrix was frothing at the mouth. She had heard people speak of this man. They usually had a note of awe in their voices that always rubbed her the wrong way. She was going to take him down a notch. Her Lord would be so proud of her. She drew her wand. "Crucio," she said.

Kato didn't move. He took the spell head-on. Internally, he groaned in pain, but he didn't show it on his face. Instead, he raised his hand and threw Bellatrix back into the room she had come out of. "Maybe the Dark Lord should keep his bitches leashed better than this," he spat before slamming the door shut and locking it. It would probably take her a while to get out of that room.

"Good morning Master Kato," Narcissa said as he entered the Sunroom.

"Good morning Lady Narcissa," Kato said. He took her hands and kissed her knuckles. "I had the pleasure of walking into your sister on my way here. You might need to send elves in with food to her for a while. I can't tell for how long the spell will hold. I was feeling irritated." He could see the expression on Narcissa's face go from fear to relief.

"I take it she was foolish enough to attack you," Narcissa said as Kato took a seat.

"Unfortunately for her, yes," Kato said. "I expect that it won't happen again." He looked over at Draco who was listening intently to what they were saying. "We will be leaving as soon as you are packed. I would suggest bringing clothes you don't care that much about. We'll be heading to a dragon sanctuary in a few days," he said.

"You will be careful I hope," Narcissa said.

"I won't let anything happen to him, Narcissa," Kato promised. He turned back to Draco and raised an eyebrow in a perfect arch much like Lucius might. "Hurry along now," he said. "We don't have all day." He could see that Draco wanted to bite back. Thankfully for him, he didn't. A wild-looking man stumbled into the room and looked around. He grinned at Narcissa and Kato could tell that she felt uncomfortable.

"Where's Bella?" he asked.

"I locked her up for bad behaviour," Kato said stiffly.

The man laughed and stumbled back out of the room. It seemed Narcissa and Lucius had some rather unfriendly house guests. "Sometimes family isn't everything," Kato said as he stood up.

"Please don't kill her," Narcissa said.

"In the end, I don't think it will be up to me, Narcissa," Kato said. "I will not raise my wand to end her. I can promise you that."

"Thank you," Narcissa said.

Kato headed back down to the foyer. He studied the many paintings that hung along the walls as he waited for Draco. He reached up and scratched Qozul's chest.

"We'll be seeing other dovah soon," he said.

"Monah feels better now?" Qozul asked.

"As soon as we leave here," Kato said.

A suitcase appeared next to Kato and he picked it up. He doubted Draco had brought what he would deem appropriate, but he wasn't going to correct him. Some things you just had to learn yourself. He grabbed Draco's shoulder once he reached him and apparated. "Have you been spending a lot of time with your aunt Bellatrix?" he asked as they landed at Ennerdale. He placed Draco's suitcase down and it disappeared.

"Some," Draco said.

"I will ask you the same thing I asked her," Kato said. "You know what she is capable of. You know she can hurt someone so badly it drives them through insanity to a comatose state. He led Draco through the house until they reached the veranda. "I can heal that insanity and bring those people back. Which shows more skill?" He pulled a curtain aside and showed Neville sitting with his parents outside. He was laughing and they looked happy.

"Who do you want to be Draco? Do you want to destroy, create, preserve, heal, what is your calling?"

Draco looked out the window at the happy family. He wished his family could be that way. Before the Dark Lord, they were sometimes. Now his father acted distant and his mother was skittish. "How can they be so carefree?" he asked.

"The wards around this house will hold long enough that the Goblin clan I belong to can get here. Attacking me and mine is the same as attacking Gringotts. The clan will crush any who dare hurt our own."

"Me too?" Draco asked.

"You are my apprentice," Kato said. "Goblins are very protective of their apprentices." He walked Draco through the house and showed him his room and the library.

"As I said we will be heading for the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary in two days. Until then I'm going to start teaching you dragon tongue and I will be training both your magic and body as well. I expect you to perform."

Draco nodded. "I understand… Master," he said.

Kato gave a sharp nod. They headed into the library. "Dragon Tongue is a very special magic. Much like Latin is a more magical language than English. Dragon Tongue in itself is magic. For some, this magic comes more naturally than others. For some, it completely takes them over and they can never speak their mother tongue again. I have taught others before you and I know what must be done to prevent something like that. As long as we treat Dragon Tongue as simply a language you will be able to understand and speak it, but you will never be able to command a dragon. In order for you to do that there is only one thing that can be done, but it would bind your life to mine indefinitely.

Draco's eyes widened. He wasn't so sure he wanted that.

"We will not be working towards that goal. What I want is an answer to my earlier question. Who do you want to be, Draco?" Kato said. "I can teach you many things, but unless you truly want to learn you never will." He drew a symbol on the table. "This is a simple sign meaning Monah or mother in English. I point this one out to you because this is what Qozul calls me." He drew out the two runes that made up Qozul's name. "Lightning and voice," he said. "Qo zul."

"So he is called thunder?" Draco asked.

"Or as close as you can get in Dragon Tongue," Kato said.

…

Remus walked by the library door and looked inside. He smiled as he saw Kato sitting with Draco. Despite Harry's concerns about teaching his former nemesis he seemed to be doing alright so far at least. He joined the Longbottoms outside. Winky had said she would be grilling tonight. He smiled as Leoline crawled up to Alice and pulled himself up on unsteady legs.

Alice laughed and shifted so she could catch Leoline if he fell. Leoline crawled from person to person and stood up next to them. They talked and laughed while Winky started on the food.

Draco walked out alone sometime later. He looked like he didn't quite know what to do with himself.

"Have a seat, Malfoy," Neville said invitingly. He had known Draco would be coming. He thought Harry was maybe a bit barmy to take on an apprentice, but he could see why now that he looked at Draco.

"Please, come here," Alice said. "Sit down, dear."

Draco moved forward slowly. He didn't quite know what to do. He had never been nice to Neville. He was surprised that everyone was so nice to him. "I'm sorry," he said stiffly.

"Whatever for?" Alice asked.

"My aunt…"

"Hush boy," Frank said. "You are not your aunt. We do not blame you for what she has done."

Leoline crawled up to Draco and grabbed onto him. He pulled himself up and Draco watched as Leo stepped away from him. He panicked. What was he supposed to do now? He reached down to catch the boy but Leoline stumbled along for several steps,

"That's my boy!" Kato said excitedly as he rushed over to them. He caught Leoline just as he stumbled and lifted him up as he spun around. He was smiling brightly and Leoline laughed merrily.

Draco stared at his Master. Kato had been a terrifying man up until now. Suddenly everything changed and Draco didn't know how to fit this new information in. Kato sat down next to Neville and rubbed his chest like he was uncomfortable.

"Something up?" Neville asked.

"Bellatrix thought it was fun to throw spells at me," Kato said. "I locked her up in a room in Malfoy Manor. I hope it was a good room because I didn't check and I have no idea how long she'll have to stay there."

Neville sighed. "Sometimes I wonder if you should be allowed to go anywhere alone," he said. "You always seem to find trouble."

Kato shrugged. "Trouble finds me. I'm seldom looking for it," he said. Leoline stood up against him and walked over to his father.

Draco felt like he was observing a family dynamic he would never understand. Kato had healed the Longbottoms. Why would they be living with him? He listened to everyone else as they spoke. They seemed comfortable with each other. It sounded almost like they had all known each other for more years than was possible considering Alice and Frank's recent condition.

Food was served on a sturdy log table. The little house-elf that cooked had made sure there was plenty for everyone and more appropriate food for Leoline. Draco felt like he could get used to this. His room was smaller than at home, but that wasn't such a big deal.

He was wrong.

2nd of July, 1997.

Draco's opinion of Kato quickly sank as low as it could the next morning. "Time to get up!" Kato roared. "Hop to it and get ready we are going outside."

Draco groaned and rolled over. This was just a bad dream. There was no way this was happening. He felt his covers disappear moments before he ended up outside. Dew hung to the grass. A light mist danced over the ground. In the east, the sun was rising slowly. Draco had to admit that it was kind of beautiful.

"Well, let's go," Kato said. "Try to keep up." He started jogging away from Draco who just stared after him. He kept going for a bit before his eyes glowed as he cast out an illusion.

Draco turned around as a loud howl could be heard. Behind him, a pack of red-eyed wolves had appeared. He started running and they chased him.

Draco was breathing heavily. He cursed Kato as he ran from the wolves. He stumbled and fell. As he looked up the wolves had surrounded him, but they just sat there watching him.

Kato walked past the wolves swiftly. "Get up," he said.

"What's the point," Draco said. "Why am I doing this?"

Kato looked at Draco for a moment. Then he drew his wand and threw over Draco's wand to him. "Get up and duel me," he said.

Draco raised his wand. A part of him was telling him that it was a really bad idea. Kato could stand up to Aunt Bellatrix and take her spells head on what could he do against a man like that, but Draco wasn't thinking clearly anymore. He started casting without warning and watched as Kato belted his wand as he dodged the spells. No matter how much Draco tried he couldn't hit Kato. "Do something! Don't just stand there!" Draco roared in frustration.

Kato moved forward through the spells fired at him and grabbed Draco. He disarmed him and felled him.

Draco had to work to regain the air that had been knocked out of him. "How did you do that?" he asked as he looked up at Kato.

"Legwork," Kato said. "Running is one of the things that helps with that."

Draco got back up and was handed his wand.

"Let's head back to the house," Kato said. "We could both use a shower."

Draco nodded slowly. He didn't know what to make of Kato. He shifted in mood very quickly, but he seemed to be perfectly in control at all times. He stepped into his shower and leaned against a wall. His legs hurt. For a moment he considered not heading down for breakfast, but he didn't doubt that Kato would deny him food if he did, so he decided against it.

After breakfast, they headed into the library and continued with Dragon Tongue. This was something Draco understood and Kato was a very good teacher. He explained things so it was easy to learn, but he also told stories and built an interest in the subject.

3rd of July, 1997.

"You don't think that maybe you are a little too harsh?" Remus asked Kato as Draco disappeared upstairs the next morning.

"No, I think I need to show him what he could achieve if he just pushed himself," Kato said. "I need him to realise that I'm not trying to hurt him, but I know that will take time."

"If you make him hate you, both of you will be miserable," Remus pointed out.

"I know," Kato said. "It will take care of itself eventually."

Remus watched after Kato. He certainly hoped it would. Though being surrounded by fire-breathing dragons might help, he guessed. It wasn't the type of situation he would want to bring an apprentice into, but Kato had learnt the hard way. Maybe Draco reminded him of himself. The difference being that at seventeen Harry had no longer acted like a petulant child.

Remus sat down next to Leoline by the kitchen table and watched as his son grabbed handfuls of porridge and showed them into his mouth. "What a mess you are making, Leoline," he said.

Leoline just looked up at his father with big eyes and gurgled.

Remus laughed. And drew his wand so he could clean the mess up. He looked over at Draco as he came into the kitchen and sat down. "Rough?" he asked.

Draco grunted. "He is supposed to teach me magic, not this mess," he complained.

"I'm sure there is a reason why he is forcing you to exercise," Remus said calmly. "The magic he is capable of is different from wizarding magic. You use your body more while casting. It might be possible that if you don't exercise then you'll just not be able to cast magicka. There could also be more to his lessons."

Draco gave Remus a strange look. Could there be something else that Kato wanted him to learn from the things they had done so far? He racked his brain, but couldn't come up with anything.

Kato stuck his head into the kitchen. "We're leaving in fifteen," he said. "If you aren't packed then your things will be left behind. Winky will not pack for you and your elves will not come here."

Remus watched Kato leave. He looked over at Draco. "He is serious," he said. "He is not trying to scare you. If you want your things along you better go pack them."

Draco ignored Remus and kept eating; he didn't move from his chair. Why should he listen to that pompous ass? He was a Malfoy.

Fifteen minutes later Kato walked into the kitchen and grabbed Draco. "I'll see you in a few weeks," he told Remus before the portkey activated and they were pulled out of there.

Draco's head kept spinning for several seconds after he landed. Once he could focus on the world around him he realised that he was standing outside a set of old iron gates. Rolling hills flowed out behind him. "What about my things?" he asked.

"You chose not to bring them," Kato said. "I did warn you."

Draco realised that Kato was wearing his Master robes and Qozul had climbed up on his shoulder. He was dressed to impress. Draco looked down at himself. He grimaced. All in all, he hadn't done too badly for an apprentice, but his clothes certainly didn't show that he was the heir of a noble house.

The gates opened slowly to reveal what the wards were hiding. Small houses lined a cobblestone path. It looked like a small village. Draco hurried after Kato as he realised that his Master was already walking. They were headed for the larger house at the end of the path. A small village square with a fountain stood before the bigger house.

Kato walked up to the front door and opened it. He scanned for any signs of life before taking a right up a set of stairs. He made sure that Draco had kept up with him as he stopped before an ornate door. He knocked on it lightly.

The door opened slowly and Kato entered with a few long strides.

The man sitting by the desk looked up. His black hair looked like he had been pulling his fingers through it repeatedly. His face was weather-worn and a burn ran along his cheek. "Welcome to Romania," he said in broken English. "You be Kato Peverell. I am Wadim Albescu. I run reserve."

Kato bowed slightly. "I'm honoured to be allowed within your gates," he said. "As you already know I am Kato Peverell and this…" he motioned to Draco, "is my apprentice Draco Malfoy."

"I not know you have…" Wadim looked like he was trying to wrap his head around the word and it became obvious to Kato that in no way had this man tried to be impolite in his letter. His English simply wasn't good enough to convey what he wanted to say.

"It was a more recent development," Kato said. "I hope that will not be a problem."

Wadim shook his head. "Your house has two rooms," he said. He sighed as he tried to figure out how to proceed. He considered asking one of his handlers to explain things to Kato, but he didn't quite know which handlers could be trusted.

There was a knock on the door and a woman with bright blue hair stuck her head in. "All dragons accounted for, boss," she said in French. "Everything seems to be okay for now." Then she realised that Wadim wasn't alone. "Oh, sorry!" she exclaimed.

"No worries, ma'am," Kato said, speaking French as well.

Wadim seemed to deflate but also relax. "Thank you, Ellie, please let the others know that we have a new addition. I expect everyone to be in the mess in half an hour."

"Sure boss," Ellie said before closing the door and leaving.

"You speak French?" Wadim asked Kato.

"I do," Kato answered.

"That is a relief. My English is not the best," Wadim said. He rose from the desk. "Our dragons are restless. Something is wrong and we don't know what it is," he said. "I have heard rumours about you. They say you can talk to dragons," he said finally realising that Kato was actually carrying a live dragon on his shoulder. "Is that a…

"Crystalback," Kato said. "He is the only known member of the species right now. This is Qozul."

"Dragons are not pets," Wadim said carefully.

"Qozul is not a pet," Kato said. "He thinks of me as his mother. I found him when he was just a hatchling. I've done my best to teach him what he will need to know should we ever find more of his kind."

"It is strange for a dragon to think of a human as their mother but not unheard of," Wadim said. "A small one like him would be easier to handle than let's say an Ironbelly."

Kato smiled. "You are certainly right about that," he said. "Now what is your problem?"

"I don't quite know," Wadim said. "The female dragons are upset. They are more aggressive than normal. I don't know why though. More handlers have gotten hurt in the last few months than in several years before now."

Kato nodded slowly. "Certainly doesn't sound good," he said.

"I want new eyes on everything," Wadim said. "I don't know if handlers are doing something wrong so I don't know who to trust. I want to add you and your apprentice to the roster if that would be alright with you. It will be easier for you to figure things out if they don't really expect anything. Around here most people are sceptical of the claims that you can speak to dragons." He held his hands out in a defeated manner.

Kato nodded. "Please jump down and grow to full size," he asked Qozul.

"Gein Monah," Qozul said as he jumped. He reached Kato's hip as he landed on the ground.

"It would be better if you didn't carry him with you," Wadim said.

"I have hidden him for years. I can continue to do so now. Only those who know of him will be able to see him," Kato said. "That includes Charlie Weasley since I have had the pleasure of making his acquaintance."

"Charlie is one of the handlers I hope is clean in this," Wadim said. "He is good." He checked the time. "Let's head down to meet them. I'm introducing you as a new employee and establishing that Mr Malfoy is your apprentice. He will be going where you are going I take it?"

"Most of the time," Kato said. "Otherwise I will put him to work in our living space."

Wadim nodded. He was just going to have to trust that Kato knew what he was doing. They usually didn't have Masters of other magics as newly employed at the reserve so he knew his people would act differently with Kato than they would any other new guy, but it would have to do.

They entered the mess hall and Wadim called for attention. "I would like to introduce Kato Peverell," he said in Romanian. "He will be joining us. I hope you will make him feel welcome. Weasley, I want you to show Mr Peverell and his apprentice to the Hedgehog once you leave here."

"Will do boss," Charlie said. He smiled at Kato.

"Good luck," Wadim told Kato in French before heading back out of the hall.

Kato walked forward calmly and sat down by one of the long tables opposite Charlie.

"So who is this fancy schmuck, Charlie?" someone asked.

"Yeah, Charlie, do you know this guy?" someone else asked.

Charlie sighed. "Whoa with the questions," he said. "Yeah, I know him. He is like the adopted brother of my big brother's fiancé or some such, so I met him when I went to France."

"We had a whirlwind romance before my shining knight left to care for his true love… dragons," Kato said dramatically. He knew that the first impression with these guys was important. If he could make them laugh it would be well worth it.

The fact that Charlie's ears turned red as people started laughing just made it even better. "No one was supposed to know about that," Charlie hissed, which brought about another burst of laughter.

"What is your Mastery though?" Ellie asked. "I mean if you have an apprentice you must have masteries, right?"

"Oh, I have a handful," Kato said as he studied his nails. He looked up at her. "Don't you worry about that, dear?" He said and smiled at her.

"Fancy yourself a charmer do you?" a woman, who could easily rival Katla in size, said.

"Only if you find me charming," Kato said with a straight face as he turned to her. "I was just trying to lighten the mood." He sat up straight and looked around. "So I'm Kato the new guy," he said. "I hope we can work well together."

"Shouldn't be a problem unless cousin has gone completely insane," a man about Charlie's age said. He looked familiar to Kato and it only took a moment for it to connect. "Deyan?" he asked.

The man nodded. "Viktor speaks highly of you," he said.

"I hope I can live up to it," Kato said. "As might be obvious I'm British though I have travelled enough that it matters little to me. I dabble in healing, curse-breaking and warding."

Charlie snorted. "Dabble in healing," he said. "You healed people that numerous other healers have had a crack at and given up on. Last I heard they are doing quite well."

"They are having a fantastic summer with their son for the first time since he was a year old," Kato said.

"So you are a healer?" the big woman said. "I'm Zoe by the way."

"Yes, Zoe I am a healer by profession," Kato said. "I have worked with Charlie's brother on a dig so I also do warding and I actually do dabble in curse-breaking though I prefer calling people in if that becomes necessary."

"You don't do things by half do you?" a guy asked.

Kato chuckled. "I like change and adventure," he said. "Some would certainly call me an adrenaline junkie, but I just love the challenge."

People laughed and Kato felt like he had managed to get the response he had wanted. He was letting them know he wasn't green to danger, but he wasn't bragging either.

"Let's head over to your place so you can get settled in," Charlie said. "You'll have it rough come morning. You'll be trailing Taka tomorrow. She isn't here right now. Something came up."

"Sounds good," Kato said.

They walked outside and headed down the row of houses again until they reached the last two houses. "We had a team of handlers retire a few weeks ago and they left House Hedgehog here in decent shape?" Charlie said. "You should be comfortable enough."

Kato walked up to the front door and looked inside the combined kitchen and living room. A set of stairs led up to the second floor where there were two bedrooms and a bathroom.

"Pick a room," Kato told Draco. He could give him that much after everything he was forcing him through recently. He turned to Charlie as Draco headed upstairs. "So how have things been?" he asked.

Charlie shrugged. "Pretty good all things considered," he said.

"Bill wanted me to let you know that he expects you to come back to Britain for the holidays," Kato said.

Charlie gave him a pained look. "He knows how much I despise Christmas," he said.

"He is getting married and wants his brother there. I do hope you can do that for him at least. If you want to avoid the Burrow you can always come stay at Ennerdale instead," Kato said.

Charlie smiled. "I might take you up on that," he said. Then he sighed. "You never sent me that lexicon," he said.

Kato smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, I overfilled my plate for a good while there. I have extra copies with me. I just need to unpack them," he said.

Charlie chuckled. "That's fine," he said. He rubbed the back of his neck. "So, are you… you know…"

Draco came back down the stairs before Charlie could ask his question. "I'll see you tomorrow," Charlie said.

"See you then," Kato said. He smiled at Charlie as he left. Then he closed the door and headed over to the kitchen. "You might as well continue on your rune work," he told Draco.

"How am I supposed to do that when all my things are back in Britain?" Draco asked.

Kato didn't even turn around. He tapped his wand on the table and Draco's notebook and copy of the Dovah Lexicon appeared. "Get to work," he said before getting back to cooking dinner.

Draco glared at Kato for a long while before picking his notebook up. He hated Kato.