The Black Lake
Fleur lounged across one of the couches, her feet propped up in Fabian’s lap, “I swear, your transfiguration teacher is a prude.”
The boys all laughed, Viktor, for he was now considered a friend, cutting in, “At least she’s competent. Durmstrang hasn’t been able to hold on to a transfiguration teacher for more than a few years. My parents had to call in a favour with a tutor to keep me ahead.”
Hadrian hummed, “Hogwarts couldn’t hold a Defense professor for more than a year for decades.”
The two foreigners gaped at him, causing Cedric to laugh, “It’s true! Before Professor Lupin, we had a new teacher every year. And they were all lousy.”
“Oi!” The teenagers turned towards the doorway where Sirius stood with a tall redhead, “I resent that.”
Cedric grinned, “Yeah, all right. You were above the bar.”
Sirius’s eyes narrowed for a moment before shrugging and plopping himself onto an empty couch. He flung a hand over the back of the sofa, “Everyone, meet Bill. Bill, meet everyone.”
Hadrian sighed, “Hello, Bill; I’m Hadrian. The one in Hufflepuff robes is Cedric Diggory, and the burly Durmstrang is Viktor Viktor. Our lovely Fleur Delacour and, lastly, Fabian.”
“Hey! Why don’t I get a proper introduction?”
Hadrian grinned, “I didn’t give myself one either.”
Bill cautiously looked around the group, “William Prewett. I just came by to talk to Lord Black, but it looks like he’s not...”
“Oh, nonsense, William. Speak your mind.”
The redhead awkwardly cleared his throat, “I just wanted to thank you for talking to my… well, for talking to Arthur.”
Sirius’s head rose from the armrest, “Just because you found out he isn’t your biological father doesn’t mean he doesn’t still love you like a son.”
Cedric cleared his throat, “Umm, I think some of us should head out. This conversation seems a bit personal.” Both Cedric and Viktor stood before shooting a sidelong glance at the Veela, who was staring at Bill with a cocked head. The boys shrugged and left the room; Fleur was, after all, family.
Hadrian watched as Cedric almost bumped into Ginevra and Draco as they quietly entered the room, Ginevra’s face brightening at the sight of Bill.
“If it isn’t my favourite brother, cousin.”
Bill’s head swung around, “Brother, cousin? Really Gin?”
Ginevra shrugged before enveloping him in a hug, “Muriel adopted you into the Prewett family, yes?” At his slow nod, she grinned and poked him in the chest, “Brother, cousin.”
Sirius cleared his throat, “If you don’t mind me asking, which one was your birth father?”
Bill’s eyes flicked over toward Fleur and Fabian, his eyes locking onto Fleur's for a long moment.
“Bill?”
He jolted as Ginevra touched his elbow, “Sorry, Fabian. Fabian Prewett.”
Fabian grimaced from his spot on the couch, “Do I have to call you son now?”
Bill shot the boy a glare, “Prewett. You aren’t a Prewett; you only bear his first name.”
Fabian grinned, “Well, technically…”
Hadrian watched as Bill’s gaze became unfocused before the redhead backpedalled, “How?”
Sirius sighed heavily, “I just want a night off. Very well. Ginevra, go get Percy. If we’re going to do this, we might as well do it fully.”
Ginevra turned to leave but then bit her lip, “What about Ronald?”
His father turned to him, “Is he ready?”
Hadrian thought for a moment, “He most likely already knows. At least this way, we can get an oath.”
Ginevra nodded once and skipped from the room, “Oh, Percival! Where art thou?”
Sirius's brow furrowed as he stumbled to his feet, "I should probably send Aureus to get Arthur too..."
Draco scoffed as he fell into the seat next to Hadrian, murmuring, “Adopting Weasleys. What is the world coming to?”
Hadrian ignored Draco and watched as Bill’s gaze drifted back over to a frowning Fabian and an intrigued Fleur.
This was going to be entertaining.
—
“Gather around! Not that close! Give a man some space!”
Hadrian and Neville shared a quick glance before crowding in with their yearmates, all trying to get a better glimpse of the battle-worn Auror.
“Now, as you are all in your fourth year, this is the year you start learning about curses.” His magical eye whirred as it rotated in his skull, “Can anyone here tell me one of three unforgivable curses?”
Susan slowly raised her hand, “Miss Bones.”
“The Imperius curse, sir.”
“Ah,” the old Auror nodded, “The ability to put anyone under your control. Yes, that one caused a bit of a headache for your aunt back during the war. Anyone else?”
Neville took a deep breath and raised his hand high, “Mr. Longbottom!”
“The torture curse,” he lifted his chin, “Also known as the cruciatus curse.”
Mad-Eye Moody stared at him for a long moment, “Yes, you would be familiar with that. I am very sorry to hear of your father’s passing; he was a good man.”
Hadrian raised his hand, hoping to take the interest off his brother, “The final curse is the killing curse, Avada Kedavra.”
Moody nodded, “You’re Sirius’s boy. You know of the godson he lost; he was the only known survivor of that curse.” He shrugged, “Of course, he was then killed by muggles, but he survived the deadliest curse we know as wizards.”
The ex-auror chuckled as he saw the Slytherins exchanging skeptical glances, “Ah, I see you don’t believe me. While there are many curses that will ultimately end with death, only the Avada rips the soul from the body. When the body has no soul, the victim cannot pass on. They are stuck in limbo. A fate shared by those who’ve received the dementor’s kiss.”
Hadrian frowned, “That’s not true.”
Moody’s magical eye spun toward him, “I daresay it is, boy.”
“Have you seen the Veil?” Hadrian could feel the weight of the resurrection stone on his finger, “Does it whisper to you? Have you spent time with the necromancer guarding its gate?” Hadrian shook his head, “I tell you, the victims of the killing curse pass on. Their death isn’t as painless as some would believe, but they still pass on.”
The entire room stared at him in earnest interest; Moody took a thumping step closer, “Have you spoken to them? Have you confirmed your theory?”
“Have you?”
Moody laughed loudly, “Touché, young Black, touché.”
“Now!” The auror limped back to the front of the empty classroom, “Demonstrations!”
—
Remus sighed as he looked out over the sea of troubled faces, “How many of you were subjected to Moody’s lessons?”
Many students raised their hands.
“Very well. For any of you who were hoping for tutoring tonight, I apologize.” Remus strolled to a bare wall and tapped it, causing the stone to turn black and smooth. He tapped it again, and when he spoke, words appeared.
“This past week, you learned about three curses which are, by name, unforgivable. What you may have failed to learn is the origin of these curses.”
Faces lit up in interest as others furrowed their brows in confusion.
“The three unforgivable curses did not all start as unforgiving.” Remus tapped the wall again, and bullet marks appeared, displaying the three unforgivables, Imperius. Cruciatus. Avada Kedavra.
“The first and last of these curses were actually developed for the care of livestock.” He chuckled at the murmurs spreading through the room, “Imagine trying to heal an injured Griffin by yourself. Now, imagine healing an imperiused Griffin who actually aids you in the job. Or, take a bowtruckle, dying from being squashed by his fallen tree, too far gone to heal. A swift avada will put the poor creature out of its misery.”
The students slowly nodded in understanding, and he tapped the board again.
“All of you are familiar with the various witch hunts throughout history. Many of you here have even perfected your animagus forms, as did many in the olden days. But for those who were unable to crawl or fly away to safety, they turned their livestock spells against their attackers. Where the Imperius and Avada were innocently created for livestock, they were later used to either give a swift death to the hunters or to dull the minds of the captured wixen that could not be freed.”
His voice grew cold, “However, there were some who did not care for the threefold law and took it upon themselves to use the spells to hunt those who hunted us. These individuals would capture a hunter and then place them under the Imperius and instruct them to slaughter their families.”
There were gasps throughout the crowd.
Remus nodded solemnly, “These same individuals then created a new spell using the tongue of the invaders, Crucio. What we know as the cruciatus curse. With these three spells, the hunters were eliminated, and the wizarding folk went into hiding.
“Now, I know Moody put some of you under the imperius already, but if there are others who would like to learn how to possibly throw it off, please see Severus or myself. We will be holding lessons on the matter for the rest of the weekend.”
—
Hadrian shivered when he locked eyes with his uncle. He could still feel the sticky, sweet feeling of the imperious washing over his magic. While he had been one of the few to throw off the curse, it didn’t mean that it hadn’t made a lasting impression. Even a week later.
He glanced around the table, frowning as he counted the individuals, “Pansy, where’s Daphne?”
Pansy’s eyes flicked up toward the head table, “She was called to the Headmaster’s office last night.”
Hadrian’s brow furrowed, and his magic began to crackle, “Last night? And no one went looking for her when she failed to return?”
The black-haired girl shrunk backwards, “Hades… your magic.”
He blinked once before reeling back the deadly aura he seemed to have been generating.
Milicent leaned forward, his aura not seeming to affect her, “We tried to go to the Headmaster’s office, but McGonagall stopped us. She said Daphne would be back tonight and gave us no other explanation.”
Tracey nodded earnestly from beside her.
Blaise, who had been abnormally quiet lately, spoke up, “Something you’ll sorely miss. It’s Daphne, Hades. Have you not noticed that Dudley is also missing? I assume he was taken due to Fleur.”
Hadrian’s gaze swept the Hufflepuff table and then the Ravenclaw table. He was met with only panicked expressions from Fleur and Cedric, quickly noting that Cho was also missing.
His grip tightened on his fork, bending the metal as he growled, “If anything happens to them….”
Pansy nodded quickly, “We know.”
He frowned at the table as he tried to think of a way to quickly locate where Daphne could be in the vast body of water.
His gaze turned upward when Pansy thumped a plate down in front of him. He nodded numbly at her expectant gaze and blinked, his gaze losing focus. If he had something of Daphne’s… something that she had poured her magic into. If he had such an item he could try and replicate what he had done with the diadem and diary. It wouldn’t be the same as looking at soul shards, but most magic left a trace. A lesson he had learned from his skinwalker uncle. Of course, Remus used the scent of someone's magic, as he couldn’t see what Hadrian and the Veela could see. The more of an individual’s magic poured into an object, the larger the trace.
He racked his brain as he tried to think of anything Daphne had charmed for him that was at the school. He rubbed at his neck and scanned the table. His eyes locked on the charm bracelet on Pansy’s wrist.
Daphne had gifted each of the girls in their friend group and all those associated with the Blacks a charm bracelet for Yule. Each bracelet held a starter charm crafted by Daphne and room for many more to come. She had told him after the fact that she thought it would be easier for him to gift his friends tokens such as the ones he had crafted to understand the dementors.
“Pansy.”
The girl’s head whirled to meet him, “Yes?”
“That charm on your bracelet, the flower… it was given to you by Daphne, yes?”
She slowly nodded, “Yes.” Her voice lowered, “She made it with her gift.”
He grinned in triumph, “Can I borrow it?”
Her eyes widened, “Can you use this to find her?”
“Possibly.”
She passed over the blue charm from her bracelet, and Hadrian held it delicately in his palm. It was a small pansy flower crafted from ice, which he assumed had charms or runes attached that would cause it to never melt or shatter. He focused his gaze, remembering what Ginevra had shown him years prior and combining it with what Remus had taught him. It took a couple of minutes of intense concentration, honing the entirety of his mageiasthesia at the small item, picking apart the magic of the item to root out its creator.
Slowly, a familiar icy blue tendril bled away from the charm. Hadrian watched as it shimmered like snowflakes drifting through the sky before it slowly wafted toward the front door and to what lay beyond.
“Thank you, Pansy.” He conjured a cord and threaded the charm onto it, placing both around his neck, “I’ll bring both it and Daphne back in one piece.”
The girl laughed, “Of course you will. Or else, you’ll answer to us.” The girls to her left nodded in agreement.
Hadrian couldn’t help but chuckle.
—
The Black Lake looked so innocent as he stared out across the surface, small ripples forming across the glassy surface from the vibration of the people moving on the pier. Every time he lost sight of the blue tendril, it would disappear, and he found it took him at least a minute to recreate the process.
He felt her before she spoke, “They took Dudley.”
“And Daphne.”
“They originally wanted Gabrielle, but Dudley volunteered in her place.”
He shifted, his bare toes digging into the wood of the platform, “We’ll get them back.”
Hadrian turned to the red-eyed Fleur, “Have you explored the lake? Do you know what it holds?”
She nodded briefly, “I’ve gone for a few swims. Water and fire don’t really mix well.”
He eyed the flimsy silver bathing suit she wore, “Perhaps you should wear a suit that is more resilient. Dragon hide or something similar if you can manage it. Many things down there have very sharp teeth.”
Fleur seemed to consider his advice before she began transfiguring her suit into something a bit more robust, “What about you?”
He shrugged as he turned back to the lake, “I have my own hide.”
She huffed as she finished the left sleeve, “That is entirely unfair.”
“Well, if you can find a way to use your fire, then you will have the advantage.”
Her head cocked to the side, something she did when she was pleasantly surprised by something, “I could possibly boil the water around me…”
He nodded, “You would have to regulate your own temperature if you do that.”
“True.” Her wand went back to waving in his peripheral.
Before he could respond, he heard the Sonorus of the man behind them.
“Witches and wizards! We welcome you to the second task of the Triwizard Tournament!”
He turned to watch Ludo trying to rouse the crowd. The clapping seemed to be subdued as the spectators surely realized the action would be happening under the water’s surface.
“Now, now! Let’s turn those frowns upside down! Our fellow judge has a surprise for all of you!”
His father, who was stone-faced and manifesting a bit of his grim ability, stood. The black mist wafted around him as he released four snitches into the air.
Hadrian could hear the excitement level of the crowd increase, and he knew the task would soon be starting. He turned away from the stands and back to the water’s glassy surface; he needed his guide. He refocused his sight on the tiny flower of ice and repeated the process to bring forth Daphne’s magic.
Ludo’s laughter filled the air, “Lord Black has invented a device that will allow all of you to witness the champions’ actions as if you were there with them!”
The crowd murmured in anticipation.
“Each of these snitches is tied to a champion’s magic. They go where our champions go!” Ludo’s voice seemed to go up an octave with each sentence. “Just look at the visibility!”
There, the tendril bled away from the charm and drifted off across the lake; his eyes followed it hungrily. Anywhere from five hundred to a thousand meters out, the blue tendril dipped beneath the water’s surface. That’s where Daphne was being held.
“Now! Without further ado. Our champions are greatly missing what they lost. At the cannon blast, the task shall begin. The champions have…”
*BANG*
Hadrian didn’t bother to listen to the rest of Ludo’s instructions. He quickly dove into the water, tapping into his core and pulling forth his bond with Anithra. He felt the scales ripple down his arms as he shoved the gillyweed into his mouth. He continued to swim after the blue tendril. When he felt the gills pop up along his throat, he dove.
The blue tendril was far easier to see without battling the sun. He grinned as he put one hand in front of the other; he kicked out and froze. Something was wrong with his legs. Breaking his vigilant watch of Daphne’s magic, he turned to look at what should be webbed feet.
If he hadn’t had gills, he would’ve drowned from the gasp that left his lips. He had used gillyweed on multiple occasions, including the Mediterranean variety used today, but he had never had this result. Where his scaled legs should have been was a trunk, much like that of Ana.
Hadrian didn’t know how he was supposed to manoeuvre through the water with a serpent’s tail. If he was given a merman’s tail, sure. But a serpent trunk?
He wiggled it experimentally. It moved in a way that told him his femur, tibia, and every other bone were no longer there. He spent a moment swaying it in various array of patterns before he found one that propelled him forward.
With a sigh of relief that produced far too many bubbles, Hadrian was off. He had to pull the charm back out to refocus on Daphne’s magic. When he finally had a course, he slithered through the water like a snake, undulating his lower half in an S-like pattern and pulling himself forward with his webbed and taloned fingers.
Hadrian swam for at least fifteen minutes and had no idea where the other champions were; his only focus now was following Daphne’s magic. He swam through a shallow portion of the lake and kept his peripheral sharp as he was now surrounded by weeds.
He had prepared himself for almost every creature he knew was in the Black Lake. His only downfall would be if he encountered a kelpie. He had no faith that he would be able to bridle the shapeshifter and only hoped he avoided its lair, which was rumoured to be in the deeper part of the lake.
His eyes caught a flicker of movement, and he spun toward the clump of greenery in suspicion. The long-leaved plants waving in the water were slowly parted to reveal the distinctive head of a Kappa only a meter before him.
Its webbed hands, with long, spindly fingers perfect for strangling, tightened on the plant. Hadrian could see the long black nails piercing the plant stem and slowly ripping its flesh loose. Tiny particles of green floated away from the vaguely monkey-like creature.
Hadrian slowly reached into his pocket, grasping for the cucumber he had carved that morning. His fingers found the cucumber among all of his other preparations, and he slowly withdrew it from his pocket.
The kappa's eyes flicked toward the cucumber, and its mouth opened slightly to reveal a sharp set of fangs among dozens of razor-sharp teeth.
As gracefully as he could, Hadrian threw the cucumber past the beast and into the weeds to his right. The kappa watched as the cucumber slowly began to sink, debating whether it would taste better than the green-scaled creature before him.
Hadrian hoped that the textbook had not been lying and that the kappa would choose the cucumber over curiosity. It was honestly one of the strangest preventatives he had in his pocket.
With a dash of speed, the kappa turned and rushed for the cucumber. Latching its fangs into its flesh as it sank into the weeds.
Hadrian grunted in surprise when its back foot had used his arm as a springboard, leaving a long cut down his forearm. Hadrian stared at the deep gash between his scales. While they may be fireproof, it appears the scales were not as impenetrable when it came to the claws of another magical beast.
He quickly swam a bit deeper to avoid the kappa’s domain as he tried to stop the bleeding from his arm. Coming to rest in a shockingly clear part of the lake, he made to conjure up a bandage. There was no way he wanted to be bleeding in open water.
Before his wand could complete its arc, he felt vibrations in the water. Frantically looking around, the last sight he thought he’d see in the Black Lake swam towards him. Hadrian backpedalled, his trunk tail swishing into overtime to avoid the jaws that had nearly taken his arm.
He stared in awed confusion as the shark-headed man in familiar Bulgarian swim trunks disappeared into a batch of nearby lake weed.
Quickly wrapping his arm in the conjured bandage, he sped in the opposite direction as he set his mind and magic on finding Daphne, refocusing to find the blue tendril again.
The next obstacle Hadrian faced was a swarm of grindylows. The grindylows rushed out of the tall lake weed at the sight of Hadrian’s torso but stopped when they spied his entirety. Hadrian chuckled to himself and didn’t even spare them a glance as he glided past the water demons, who were often kept as pets by merpeople. He was sure to have confused most, if not all, of the horned menaces.
After another hundred meters or so, Hadrian heard it. The haunting voice that had graced the Slytherin common room months before.
He saw the ruins before he spied his first green-haired merman. He was abnormally tall, his grey skin offset by a green beard and flowing green locks that floated around his shoulders. His lamplike eyes followed Hadrian as he swam past, a trident clutched in his webbed fingers.
As Hadrian was so close, he didn’t bother finding the tendril again. Instead, he followed the sound of the merfolk singing. It oddly felt like he was a sailor, steering towards the sirens who would be his doom.
He was met with a shock when he found the prisoners. Daphne hung limply, bobbing in the water, her blonde hair waving around her like a halo. Dudley and the others floated next to her, each tied by the ankle to a pillar.
But what drew his immediate attention was the massive ball of fire underneath the four hostages.
Hadrian rushed forward, talons aimed to strike before he realized what was at the centre of that fire.
The flame dodged him and spun, Fleur’s face among a nest of fire for hair, meeting his own.
“Fleur?” He choked out, finding the act of speaking an odd sensation with gills.
She smiled and shone brighter, flinging a ball of flames at the green rope holding Dudley.
Hadrian shook his head in amazement before turning to Daphne. His taloned thumb caressed her cheek before he lashed out with his webbed hands, talons severing the seaweed rope in one swipe. He gently caught Daphne’s lulling form and began to snake upwards.
A moment later, Fleur joined him, floating Dudley at a distance so he didn’t burn with her touch.
They broke the surface with gasps, Hadrian keeping his gills beneath the surface, “How?”
Her head no longer surrounded by flames, she ignored his questions as she splashed water at Dudley, “Je ne te pardonnerai jamais si tu meurs!”
The boy spluttered from the onset of water and raised his hand to avoid taking any more water to the face, “Je vais bien!”
She shook her head and focused back on Hadrian, who was gently trying to wake Daphne, “Magnesium.”
His brows furrowed as he eyed her, “What?”
She laughed as the flames continued to dance around her body in the water, “I transfigured my outfit to weave magnesium into the fibres. It took a bit of extra charm work, but it was worth it. Magnesium produces oxygen as it burns, and I made sure it wasn’t a threat to my bubble head charm.”
Hadrian laughed as Daphne began to stir, “And your heritage kept you from being consumed in the flames.”
She nodded, “Exactly! Although, I would very much appreciate it if someone could lend me their cloak. I’m afraid my flames are all that are keeping me clothed.”
Dudley, who looked horrified at the thought, swung his cloak from his shoulders, “Here, Fleur, take mine.”
The blonde grinned, and her eyes flicked upward toward the snitches; positioning the cloak above her to block out the view, she let the flames die down and tied the cloak firmly around her.
Hadrian’s grip on Daphne loosened as she finally gained consciousness.
He laughed in relief at her scowling face, “Good morning, darling. Care for a swim?”