Fire
Hadrian sighed as he fell on the settee, “While I’m annoyed I was chosen, that was a brilliant show.” He glanced up at his father, who lounged on the chair opposite, “Did you tap into your grim form, or was that Aureus lending you his shadows?”
Sirius grinned, “It was a partial shift. I find I’m able to sense irregularities in one’s magic better in canine form. Only, I can’t partially shift into Padfoot.”
Hadrian nodded and stared at the vaulted black stone ceiling, “That’s a useful trick; I may have to steal it." He waved his hand in the air, "How did this schoolhouse come about?”
“It’s actually a wizarding tent commissioned from the goblins.” His father laughed at his shocked expression, “I told them I wanted a miniature replica of the Peverell manor that could be erected in a matter of minutes. I passed the bag off to Remus before I entered the hall. I believe he and Severus had it constructed, and Reg had the dementors close by enough that they just drifted over across the lake.”
“You had dementors on Hogwarts grounds already?”
His father chuckled softly, “Hades, only half of the dementors returned to Azkaban. The others now reside in the forest. They don’t have to feed now that you placed the anchors around the school and live peacefully with the thestrals. Reg went to let them know we would be setting up shop on Black Island.”
Hadrian’s brow rose, “Black island?”
Sirius grinned widely, “I donated a large sum to the ministry a few weeks ago and asked a tiny favour. This island was previously unnamed, and now it isn’t. It resides on Hogwarts property, and since Amelia knows that Hogwarts is technically one of your ancestral homes, she pushed it through.” He smiled, “It has a lovely view of the sunrise.”
Hadrian shook his head in exasperation and sighed, “I’m gonna miss having my common room. It’s gonna be lonely with only having family around while all my friends are so close.” He groaned, “Not to mention everything we’re going to miss.”
“What an idiotic thing to say.”
Turning to the drawling voice that had interrupted his conversation, he glared at his uncle, “Why?”
Severus smirked, “Have you even bothered to speak to Guinn?”
“No, he hasn’t.” The shimmering form of Guinevere appeared next to Severus, “I’m sure it’s slipped his mind, Severus. Don’t be too harsh.”
Hadrian’s eyes narrowed at the two for a moment, “Guinn, would it be possible to link to the boy’s common room?”
She smiled, “The door is behind you. I’m afraid your bedroom is no longer there, but you will have access to the common room and the main common area, including the fireplace entrance to the chamber.”
“Of course…” His father cut in, “Your friends are all welcome to come here as well. I had this place constructed to be a school. It could house at least a hundred students and still have room for classrooms.”
“Hadrian,” He turned to face Guinn, who had moved closer, “While you are the heir of two founders, you are first and foremost Merlin’s heir. This castle and myself, we will always defer to you first. I will aid you in any way that I can, but you need to know, the chamber… do not share it with your foreign friends. I know some are family, but the magic of the fireplace entrances will not react kindly to them. They were called here to compete against Hogwarts; the entrances will register that as a threat. If you wish to aid them in any way, please use the room of requirements main entrance to do so.”
“It didn’t react to Dudley.”
“He was no longer a foreign student. He was not brought here to compete; therefore, he was not viewed as a threat and was allowed entrance.”
Guinn moved around him and tapped the door she had indicated earlier, “Now, I believe you have some rather worried friends to appease and then festivities to attend. I will go retrieve the others.” She turned around at the doorway, “The Samhain ritual room has been prepared, and doors have been added to each common room and will be visible to all those who wish to participate.”
Hadrian couldn’t help but grin at the news, “Are the foreigners coming?”
Guinn smiled, “Those that were invited personally will be there.”
With that, she was gone. Without a second thought, Hadrian strolled through the door, closely followed by his father and uncle.
“Hades!”
The wind was knocked from his lungs as the blonde-haired blur collided with his torso. His hands immediately reacted and encircled her petite frame, “It’s alright, Daph, I had a feeling this was coming.”
“Your room is gone, Hermione’s is gone, and so are Neville’s and Draco’s.”
His hand stroked down her cheek, “All Blacks were entered. We now all reside on the premises for the School House of Black Magic.”
Her brow rose, “The what?”
His father chuckled from behind him, breaking the bubble that had been Hadrian and Daphne, “It’s ingenious, isn’t it? The old man fears the Black family’s reputation of using dark magic, so it’s a clever name.”
Severus scoffed, “Childish, more likely.”
Within minutes, Guinn had retrieved the remaining Black children from their new rooms. Hadrian explained first to his year-mates what had happened before he was summoned to the main common room. Severus had gone ahead and demanded a house meeting. Every Slytherin was present as Hadrian began to reiterate the evening’s events again.
“So, someone entered all of you into the tournament?” Asked a first-year, Graham Pritchard.
Hadrian nodded, “The Daily Prophet will be releasing an article tomorrow, but we felt the need to tell those in our house the truth now. We are still trying to figure out who is working against us, so if anyone has any information, please bring it to our attention.”
Once everyone had quieted, Severus spoke up, “Now that all that is out of the way, I believe we have a bonfire to attend.”
—
“I didn’t know Hogwarts celebrated the old holidays.”
Hadrian eyed the brunette across from him. The boy was aristocratically handsome like most purebloods, with high cheekbones, a square jaw, and deep navy eyes framed by long lashes. He was a friend of Fleur’s and had joined them for the Samhain celebration and now breakfast.
“It’s not something that has been done for a very long time. But now that there are founder heirs in the castle once more, there are bound to be changes.”
The boy nodded slowly as if digesting his words before changing topics, “So, how do you feel about competing? Fleur is so very proud of herself.”
The veela lightly shoved the boy as she dragged the platter of breakfast pastries closer, mumbling quietly, “Imbécile.”
Hadrian was trying to place the region of France the boy hailed from and had failed to answer him.
“He’s thrilled.”
Hadrian turned to glare at the Italian speaking for him. Blaise winked in his direction before turning back to stare at the sixth-year Beauxbatons boy, Armel Meadux.
“As Blaise so eagerly put it, I’m thrilled to be competing in a tournament that could possibly strip me of my magic or kill me. Entirely thrilled.”
Daphne smirked while Hermione rolled her eyes. Not everyone appreciated sarcasm so early in the morning.
Fleur smiled at him as she picked through the underwhelming offering of pastries, “You will not die, Demon.”
Hadrian scowled, but before he could reprimand her for her choice of nicknames, he was being pulled from his seat.
“Come on! We need to make sure to catch the boat in time. We can’t be late for runes!”
He rolled his eyes as Hermione pulled him from the hall, waving a quick goodbye to Daphne and Fleur. Honestly, Hermione’s obsession with their newest teacher was something else. If Toruk weren’t a goblin, he would warn Theo that he had competition.
As he allowed Hermione to pull him through the front doors, they almost collided with a group of Durmstrang students. Among them stood a frowning Krum. His eyes flicked from Hermione to Hadrian, to her grip on his forearm, and then back to Hermione.
Huh. Maybe Theo would have some competition, not that Hermione noticed the attention.
Hadrian smirked when he saw Rita and her photographer at the shoreline.
Hermione groaned, “You’re going to miss the introduction to the Egyptian segment…”
He laughed, “I’m sure you will have excellent notes I can review.”
She frowned, “Maybe I won’t share them with you.”
“You do know the weighing of the wands is a part of the tournament, right?” His brow rose, “What if by skivvying off the weighing and attending Ancient Runes, I invoke some arbitrary rule, and it causes me to lose my magic?” He gave her his best pout, “You wouldn’t want me to lose my magic, would you?”
She glared at him, “You can use Draco’s notes.”
Shaking his head as she grumbled, climbing into the boat, Hadrian went to meet Rita.
Her golden hair was curled and pinned up in an intricate updo. Her acid green quill stuck through the curls as if it were part of the ensemble. She wore a shin-length black pencil skirt with a shimmering black blazer that also seemed to be a cape.
“Well, aren’t you looking marvellous today? I thought you were going to wear green?”
Rita smiled, her gold tooth glinting, as she sauntered up to him, leaving her photographer to deal with his trunk, “That was when you were still a Slytherin, but now you’re a Black Magic student; I needed to adjust my appearance.” She grinned when he rolled his eyes, “I must say, your new school robes are far more fetching. Does darling Daphne approve?”
Hadrian chuckled, “Oh, she does.”
He would hardly call his new uniform a robe, as it didn’t actually contain one.
Walburga had taken it upon herself to design the school robes for the School House of Black Magic. The uniform was fashioned after the Hogwarts robes from her childhood. According to his grandmother, the Hogwarts uniform had lost any sense of fashion as the years progressed.
He ran his hand down the front of the blazer and straightened one of the cuff links, “It is a far cry better than the robes I have been wearing, even if they were tailored to fit better.”
Rita nodded, “Has Sirius decided whether he’s going to use Houses with so few of you?”
He laughed, “Oh, he’s assigned them himself. Grim, thestral, and dementor.” He tapped the small stitched symbol on his blazer pocket opposite the House of Black crest, “Neville and I are grims. Draco and Hermione are thestrals, and lastly, Fabian, Gideon, and Dudley are dementors.”
Rita eyed the stitching, “I would say those are odd choices, but we all know they really aren’t.” She chuckled, “Well, the ceremony is to begin in half an hour. If you wish, you may join your class for a few minutes, or you could be a dear and escort us to the antechamber.”
Hadrian grinned, “Oh, it would be my pleasure to escort you, Rita.”
She winked at him before wrapping her arm around his elbow, “How are you taking to the other champions?”
He shrugged, “I’ve known Cedric for years, and Fleur is family of sorts. Krum seems as if he’s trying to figure me out.”
“Oh?”
“I also think he has a crush on Hermione.”
“He’s a bit old for her.”
He didn’t miss the glint in her eyes, “She’s also with Theo.”
She waved away his comment, “Pish, posh, they aren’t wed yet.”
Hadrian chuckled, “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind when Hermione finds out about Krum.”
They ascended the stairs to the front hall, and Rita disentangled herself from him, tapping her foot as she waited for her photographer to catch up, “I do so enjoy love triangles.”
“Hermione can be vindictive; don’t get on her bad side.”
Rita batted her eyes, “I wouldn’t dream of such a thing.”
—
The Triwizard Tournament Begins!
By Rita Skeeter
Photographs by Nigel Thorn
Today, we joined the champions in the next step of the Triwizard Tournament. While many would argue that the next step would actually be the first task, they would be incorrect. History dictates that having a properly working wand is an absolute necessity in tournament completion, which leads us to today’s task: the Weighing of the Wands.
While the Wizarding World as a whole was shocked and outraged by the news of there being four champions competing in the revival of the Triwizard Tournament, the students had other thoughts. As I asked around the school, most students and faculty could find no fault in the youngest competitor, Hadrian Black. As stated in my last article on Tournament coverage, Heir Black made an oath stating he had no part in his participation in this monumental event.
The Weighing of the Wands was presided over by famous wandmaker Garrick Ollivander. Mr. Ollivander hails from a long line of wandmakers and is the premier choice for wands in wizarding Britain.
The first champion’s wand to be observed is Miss Delacour of Beauxbatons. She sports a wand that possesses a bit of her family heritage, crafted for her personally by a family friend. Her wand was in perfect working condition, and it received much praise from Mr. Ollivander over the custom design.
Our next champion was Mr. Krum of Durmstrang. Mr. Krum’s wand is a Gregoravich creation, rumoured to be one of the last to be sold before the elderly wandmaker decided to retire. His grandson has taken over his mantle and will begin crafting wands in the new year.
Mr. Diggory of Hogwarts carries an heirloom Ollivander creation that is in beautiful working condition. It was noted that the wand, which originally belonged to Mr. Diggory’s grandfather, seemed to be entirely in harmony with young Mr. Diggory’s magic. A rare sight as most heirloom wands tend not to be perfect fits for any but their original owner.
Our last champion, Mr. Black of the School House of Black Magic, possesses a wand that Ollivander sold but was made by another. A wand that speaks to his family history. I will note that the wand refused to work for any, but Mr. Black and Mr. Ollivander had to conduct his evaluation by coaching the Black heir to perform the correct tests.
Mr. Ollivander declared all wands to be in perfect working condition and has certified that all are tournament-ready.
The champions will face their first task on Nov 22nd at 11 am. Tournament coverage will be provided by yours truly.
The event will be open to a small amount of spectators, along with the family and friends of the champions. To add yourself to the spectator shortlist, please contact the Department of Magical Sports, where a lottery will be held for seats for each task.
Photographs of the champions will be sold in the ministry atrium, and proceeds will be sent to a cause chosen by each champion.
—
Hadrian lay across one of the couches in the chamber, Cedric lying on the one across from him, “Chimeras can breathe fire.”
“True.”
The task was less than a week away, but they still weren’t any closer to devising a way to survive.
He spent his days split between core classes in the castle and his other courses in the Black schoolhouse.
The goblin tutor, Toruk, was exceptional at runework and knew languages that wizards had never considered unravelling; Hermione adored him. His father took up the Astrology class, while his assistant taught a relatively rigid Arithmancy class. Sirius and Toruk also took turns teaching spell crafting and history, offering different viewpoints on each historical event. Learning Care of Magical Creatures from a dementor was rather odd, but they were given far more information than even the books listed.
Overall, it had been an intense three weeks.
Cedric sighed, “You really think it’s a creature of fire?”
Hadrian nodded absently; Luna hadn’t been willing to confirm his suspicions, only telling him that he would perform admirably, “I can’t confirm it, but yes, I believe so.” Or at least, Ron believed so. If only he had cornered the Gryffindor to question him.
Speaking of Ron, the redhead moved through the assortment of chairs towards them, Luna trailing in his wake.
Hadrian and Cedric both eyed the redhead as he shoved a hand into his robes and pulled out a metal tin, thrusting it toward Cedric, “Here.”
Cedric took the tin and cautiously opened it, revealing a thick green goo.
Ron turned and made to leave them to their conversation.
"Oi, wait, Weasley!” Cedric shook the tin, “What's this?"
Ron's brows furrowed as he stared blankly at Cedric, "Burn paste."
Cedric frowned at the redhead, "Why do I need burn paste?"
Ron pointed to his shoulder, "For the burn. My brother sent it; it’s loads better than anything Pomfrey has."
Luna smiled softly from the back of Hadrian’s sofa, "Ronald, can you remind me what caused Cedric's burn in the first place?"
Ron's face scrunched, "The dragon, Luna."
Luna nodded serenely, "Thank you, Ron. I fear the wrackspurts have been interfering with my memory."
The redhead shrugged and strolled off across the room.
She smiled sadly after him, “He loses track of time when the visions are closer to completion. I fear he truly believes the task is already over.”
Hadrian frowned, “That’s…”
Luna nodded, “I know. We will work on it.” She smiled down at Hadrian, “So, it looks like dragons are in your future."
Cedric gingerly touched his uninjured shoulder, "Looks like pain is in my future."
Hadrian sighed, "Okay, what do we know about dragons? We've got until Saturday to work out a strategy."
Luna shrugged, “Ask Draco. He’s the closest thing you’re going to get in such a short window.”
__
It turns out Draco was far more than helpful, “Hades, you can literally speak to dragons. Just ask the dragon for aid in whatever task you are set.”
Sirius frowned and looked up from the desk he was currently using to grade their astronomy homework, “You can speak to dragons?”
Draco shrugged, “He spoke to the dragon Hagrid hatched in his cabin back in our first year. We fed it a rabbit. It was rather gruesome.”
“Hagrid?” Sirius looked bewildered, “Hagrid, who lives in a wooden hut, hatched a dragon?”
Hadrian blinked, “I forgot about that. I guess that could help… but what if the dragon isn’t compliant?”
His father shook his head and pushed aside the stack of papers, “Son, we have many contacts; I’m sure we can find someone who can answer that question.”
Draco slapped his knees and grinned widely, “Ana!”
Hadrian grinned in understanding. It had been a while since he had spoken to his once mentor, Anacletus Solon. The geminus had helped in Hadrian’s second year with the students who had been turned to stone and even instructed Draco on his parseltongue usage.
“Do you think he would know about dragons?”
“He’s ancient; I’m sure he’s come across a dragon or two.”
Sirius nodded, “I’ll talk to Reg and Pru and see if either of them can get a mirror to Ana.”
Hadrian turned toward his father, “Is he still working for the Department of Mysteries, or did he go back to Greece?”
“He occasionally will assist in the department but has mostly returned to Greece.”
“We should go talk to Anithra too.”
Hadrian glanced up at Draco, “You think she’ll know?”
He rather felt like he was being a nuisance with how under-prepared he currently felt.
Draco gave him a significant look, “She’s over a thousand years old, and the Hogwarts motto talks about a dragon. I’m sure she has at least a story for us.”
Sirius waved them on, “Go ask. I’ve got to get these essays reviewed.”
Hadrian and Draco left Sirius to his grading and made for the parlour, which now housed a variety of doors courtesy of Guinn. Each door held a plaque for where it led. There was a plaque for Black Manor, the boy’s Slytherin common room, Severus’s office, one for Luna’s use, and one that led to Salazar’s study. The last door only Hadrian could open and was the door he made for.
Moments later, the two left the founder’s study and made their way through the empty chamber. It was a weeknight, so the students were all up above in the main school. Unlocking the door that separated Anithra’s chamber from the main chamber, Hadrian and Draco climbed through.
Anithra lounged across a ledge carved from the rock. Her head swivelled to meet them, and she hissed a happy greeting, ~My hatchlings have come to entertain their mother.~
Draco’s nose wrinkled, ~Mother?~
Anithra unwound herself, revealing a large bulge in her length, ~ I have claimed you. Therefore, I am your snake mother. What brings my hatchlings to my den?~
Harry sat on a boulder, ~Anithra, do you know anything about dragons?~
~I know of dragons. Did you know Hogwarts once had a dragon? It remained from the prior inhabitants; he moved on once the founders were gone, but he was entertaining.~
Draco’s brow rose, ~Entertaining, how?~
“Do you know why your school words tell you not to tickle dragons while they sleep?~
Both boys chorused, ~No.~
She slid down from her ledge and brought herself level with the boys, ~Godric was enamoured by Gantruch and constantly visited the Dearg Beithir.~ She hissed a laugh. ~One instance led Godric to tickle Gantruch as he slept. Godric lost everything he wore that day, including his hair. It took ages to regrow.~
Hadrian frowned, ~Dearg Beithir?~
~His line was also called the Ddraig Goch or the Red Dragons.~
Draco gaped, ~The dragons of Pendragon.~
~Gantruch was the last to grace these lands.~
Hadrian leaned forward in anticipation, ~Could you speak with him?~
~Yes.~
He grinned, ~Can you speak to any dragon?~
~I am unsure; I have only spoken to one.~
That one line would cause Hadrian a restless night.
—
The following day, Hadrian was woken by the abrupt feeling that he was not alone. His eyes flew open and found the unmistakable form of Anacletus Solon standing at the end of his bed.
“Hadrian.”
“Ana. You’re in my room.”
“You were sleeping. You have much to learn and not much time; you can sleep later.”
Hadrian sat up immediately, “Do all dragons speak Pareseltongue?”
Ana chuckled softly, the sound being much closer to a hiss than a laugh, “It depends on the dragon.” At Hadrian’s pleading look, he continued, “All dragons share a common ancestor; the difference between European dragons is that they have evolved beyond their original forms by coming into contact with the creations of my people.”
“The basilisk?”
“Yes. European dragons have melded with enough of the basilisk-bred serpents of Europe that they inherited their language.”
Hadrian nodded along as Ana slithered towards the door. He pulled on a robe and followed his mentor.
Ana made for the sitting room as he continued, “Eastern dragons, those that are still true to their forms, those that you may find in Asia, speak something called Drekouse. Drekhouse is the original dragon tongue, although I’m afraid many modern dragons have forgotten their native tongue.”
Hadrian sat on the settee as Ana climbed onto the wingback, “Why? Why breed with other creatures if it meant giving up their true heritage?”
Ana chuckled, “I fear many in the wizarding world feel the same way about your reborn.”
“Oh. So they did it for survival.”
He nodded, “Yes. The Middle Ages were a rough age for the Dragonborn. Long ago, they bred to attain the venom from the basilisk, but the humans changed their tactics. The humans used spears and traps to distance themselves from the venomous teeth. The dragons begged Lady Magic to give them wings so they could flee the humans who sought their hide. In exchange for wings, she took their venom. But, she was not unkind; instead, she left them with fire.”
Hadrian blinked. He had never come across this information in the library.
Ana continued, “Over time, the dragons began to change to fit their surroundings. This is where we get the different breeds. Some had more need than others to hide from nearby humans, so they climbed into the mountains, growing robust legs to aid them. Others lived in areas where the humans were not quite as persistent; these dragons had less to fear and became complacent. Their wings became their identity, and oftentimes their forelegs would meld with their wings; these became known as wyverns.”
“What did the original dragons look like?”
“Have you seen a depiction of a Chinese dragon? Not the ones that were brought here millennia ago that still hold the name, but a true Chinese dragon.”
“Yes.”
“That is your answer.”
Hadrian frowned, “But they appear far more serpent-like than any European dragon.”
“True, but without the breeding with basilisks, they never lost their native tongue. They are revered by the humans in their culture, and thus they did not have to hide away or transform their forms to protect themselves.”
“So I will most likely be able to converse with the dragon.”
“I would find it rather odd for the coordinators to bring a true Eastern dragon westward.”
“What if the dragon disregards what I say?”
Ana smiled, “Use the gifts you have.”
“Parseltongue is my gift.”
“It is not the only gift your ancestor left you.”
Hadrian frowned, “I can use parselrunes, but I probably wouldn’t have enough time to carve something with a dragon roaming about.”
Ana scoffed, “Scales, Hadrian, use your scales.”
He blinked twice, “I’m sorry, my what?”
Ana frowned, “Have you not been taught to use your scales?”
Raising a brow, Hadrian shook his head, “Seeing as I have zero understanding of what you just said, I would say no.”
His mentor sighed, “You have much yet to learn.”