murder is no trifle (Harry Potter/Arthurian Legends)
Caspian pushes open the doors of the Great Hall before Harry Potter has even finished owlishly blinking at the Goblet of Fire, disbelieving of what just happened to him. Professors stand to face this intruder, but he is faster than they are.
He raises his wand and flares his magic, tendrils of green and purple wrapping around his ribcage.
“I invoke Suzerain Rights to take his place.”
The professors lower their wands, bewildered. People look at each other. Hushed murmurs rise in the crowd. Albus Dumbledore stares, his expression unreadable.
“That’s the sigil of House Le Fey,” they say, pointing at the raven holding a red apple embroidered on the breast of his high collar robes. “I thought the family was cursed to never leave Avalon.”
“They weren’t cursed,” others refute. “They just haven’t set foot in Albion since Grindelwald’s war.”
“Not since the war. Since Dumbledore became Chef Warlock,” someone whispers. “They closed their borders then and didn’t even open them for the Dark Lord.”
Huh. That’s a bit closer to the truth. A scion from a Dark House, perhaps. Caspian glances over. He’s got the look of a Malfoy. Caspian isn’t interested in the former vassals of House Rowle. William The Conqueror and his descendants are irrelevant upstarts doomed to extinction, and the French Houses that followed them to Britain are beyond his notice.
“Did House Le Fey put Potter’s name in the Goblet?” someone tries, frowning, and Caspian fixes them with a piercing glare. The girl who spoke squirms in her seat before lowering her eyes.
He hears Harry Potter ask a girl at his side who Caspian is. She whispers quite loudly that he’s a scion of House Le Fey, prince of the Isle of Avalon. That his mother is in a healing sleep and rumoured to have been alive for centuries. That no one knows who his father is.
Caspian tries not to be amused. He is indeed the son of Enid Le Fey, daughter of the enchantress Morgan. Most of his older siblings did not wish to inherit his mother’s longevity and the sleeping curse tied to it, and those who did preferred to leave the mortal plane and make a life in the fae realm. This makes him, by technicality, the last heir of Avalon. He doesn’t know why the identity of his father matters; Princess Enid has no shortage of suitors from all around, but they all know the rules: the children of Avalon belong only to their mother.
“I am Caspian Le Fey, heir of the Principality of Avalon. As the underage and orphaned Lord of his House, Harry Potter is by law a ward of the Castle of Fair Guard, and it is my responsibility to grant him protection and succour.”
A boy from the Slytherin table stands up and strides towards Caspian, who looks at him evenly. The boy pauses. Then kneels.
“I, Theodore Nott, heir of Arsene Nott, witness your pledge as suzerain. House Nott remembers their oaths,” he murmurs.
There is a pause, then a girl from the Hufflepuff table rises too, and follows the boy’s lead.
“I, Susan Bones, heir of Amelia Bones, witness your pledge as suzerain. House Bones remembers their oaths.”
Twin Slytherins speak for House Carrow. A Hufflepuff and another snake for House Selwyn. A Ravenclaw for House Burke. Three Gryffindors for House Myriadd. A Hufflepuff for House Alixan.
Three professors hesitate, then follow them, earning themselves betrayed looks from their colleagues, who struggle to contain the students’ excitement.
“I, Sybill Trelawney, scion of her House, witness your pledge as suzerain. House Trelawney remembers their oaths,” is said in a wobbly voice.
“I, Filius Flitwick, lord of House Flitwick, witness your pledge as suzerain. House Flitwick remembers their oaths.”
The last man intrigues Caspian because of the way Harry Potter watches him warily. He is tall, dark-haired, and exudes an aura of anger and misery potent enough to be choking.
“I, Severus Snape, lord of House Prince, witness your pledge as suzerain. House Prince remembers their oaths.”
“Do you?” asks Caspian softly. “Even if this oath supersedes all others?”
He glances at the man’s left arm. The last Prince tenses, but nods.
“I do.”
He wishes it, Caspian realises. His other masters must be quite terrible for him to swear to a stranger to get rid of their shackles.
The scion of House Trelawney licks her lips. “If I may... which family claims the boy? To my knowledge, the Potters weren’t ancient enough to stand at court.”
The Boy-Who-Lived perks up at the mention of his family.
“They weren’t, though they have some interesting ancestry, to say the least,” muses Caspian. The Peverells swore to the Pendragons, though. There is no need to say that here, however. Not when the last descendants of Arthur were decimated by Grindelwald. They hid in Austria for centuries, but it wasn’t enough to save them. “As for the House that claims him... Harry Potter is the Lord of House Black, named as such by his godfather who relinquished his title in his favour after he himself was found unsuitable by the family magic.”
Someone gasps. “Is Black in Avalon?” he hears.
“Black is a murderer!” protests the Heiress of House Bones.
“He’s not,” protests Harry Potter indignantly. “I told Minister Fudge he wasn’t the Secret Keeper and Pettigrew was alive, but he dismissed me and called me a liar!”
Several cries sound out.
The heir of Avalon tilts his head.
“Oh?” wonders Caspian. “Mother didn’t mention that.”
“Is that why you knew to come here?” asks Professor Flitwick shrewdly.
Caspian nods.
“House Black stayed faithful for a millennium.” They might have played around with a few Dark Lords, but they always came when House Le Fey called on them, which is the only thing that matters as far as Caspian’s family is concerned. “My mother, Enid Le Fey is a seer. When she witnessed the possible extinction of House Black in her visions, she decided to send me as her representative.”
It’s not the first time Caspian is called upon to save a Black. Regulus might have forsaken his oath to House Le Fey when he swore to a Dark Lord, but he definitely remembered his duty when he was close to death; he vowed to protect Avalon as a ghost. It moved Caspian’s mother enough to prompt her to request he bring the erstwhile spare of House Black to their castle before the inferi overwhelmed him. He’s not quite alive enough to stand as Lord of House Black, hence their need to protect Harry Potter, but he’s recovered quite a bit since Caspian fished him out of the treacherous waters of the Dark Lake. Not enough to awaken, though. That’ll take a few more years.
Caspian turns to Harry Potter.
“What do you say? Will you let me represent you in this contest and ensure you survive the coming years?” He pauses. "I can help out your godfather while I'm at it, to spice things up a little."