The Silver Trio and an Auspicious Beginning

Hermione and Ron were going to kill Hadrian James Potter. 

Snape led them down to the depths of the school, herding them into his personal study, where he didn’t speak, but began furiously stirring multiple potions. They didn’t even wait for him to instruct them, instead just sitting in chairs out of the way, eyes downcast as excuses flew through their heads. Hermione and Ron would occasionally look up warily, but Harry had the slightest smirk on his face. 

It wasn’t until another knock on the door that the smirk slid from his face, as Filch opened it to allow Professor McGonagall and a shaking Neville.

The tired look Harry shot his friend made Neville wince and step behind his Head of House.

“I am disgusted. Four students out of bed in one night! Gallivanting around the Forbidden Forest, not even caring that you are four first-years ! I had hoped that when Mr. Filch came to Professor Snape and I with information about a handful of students leaving the castle in the middle of the night that he was simply mistaken. Now I see that you three must have tricked Mr. Longbottom here into following you into the Forest for some prank. I cannot believe my eyes.” Professor McGonagall was near spitting as she eyed all four of them.

“Minerva, while I appreciate you and… Mr. Filch taking such a vested interest in my students, I somehow doubt tonight’s events were the conclusion of some sinister plot. Therefore, I do not understand why you brought one of your lions down here. Mr. Longbottom was not apprehended anywhere near where I found my charges, I fail to see why you may think they were together.”

McGonagall’s jaw dropped as she stared at Snape. Before she could retort, the sound of footsteps aided by a cane echoed down the stone hallway.

Professor Kettleburn appeared in the doorway, mouth set in a scowl. “I thought I told you three to meet me back at Hagrid’s cabin after we were finished?”

Ron and Hermione met each other’s eyes, and then turned to face the front of the room to hide their expressions from the professor they knew wouldn’t think twice at seeing any confusion as a lie. Snape, at least, would respect the attempt to escape punishment.

Harry, however, turned to face Kettleburn with a guilty look. “Sorry, sir. After we got spooked by that noise in the Forest, we didn’t see you, and thought we would just head back to the castle and meet you outside of your study.”

“Hm.” The man winced as he readjusted his stance. “Fine. Severus, apologies for not alerting you that I was taking these three into the Forest for some work. With the unicorn issue, I was hoping that some younger students would be luckier finding her. Mr. Potter here has been helping me out with classes, and he didn’t hesitate to volunteer to help.”

“I’m sure he did.” Severus watched the three Slytherins, only Harry meeting his gaze, though briefly. “I appreciate the information, Silvanus. I will keep it in mind when I have a discussion with my students.”

Kettleburn nodded. “Aye, of course. Hadrian, I expect a debrief by Monday evening.”

“Yes sir. Thank you for the opportunity, even if we didn’t actually see any unicorns, it was a most informative evening.”

“Minerva.” Kettleburn gave another nod to the Transfiguration professor as he hobbled out of the room.

“As I said, Minerva. No evil Slytherin plots in this. Just some extra work for my students, and whatever Mr. Longbottom’s excuse is.”

McGonagall’s lips were especially pinched. “Indeed. Well, Mr. Longbottom, I think fifty points from Gryffindor and a detention with Hagrid ought to do the trick. He’s been needing help of late, I expect an extra set of hands wouldn’t go remiss.”

Neville’s pale face turned to a shocking shade of grey. “Y-Yes, Professor.”

“I will deliver you to the common room. Severus, I apologize for the intrusion and the misunderstanding.”

“I am not the ones you infringed upon with the misunderstanding, Minerva.”

Hermione’s eyes went wide as she realized what Snape was saying.

If it was possible, McGonagall’s lips pursed further. “Indeed… Mr. Potter. Mr. Weasley. Ms. Granger. It was irresponsible of me to assume the worst of you three. I may not be your head of house, but as the deputy headmistress, I should have taken care to ensure that I had all of the information before disparaging upon your characters. I apologize.”

Harry was solemn as he responded. “Thank you, Professor. We should have made sure that at least Professor Snape was aware of Professor Kettleburn’s request. I’m sorry for causing such confusion, I’m sure you had better things to do on your Saturday night.”

She simply gave a “hm,” nodded at him, and herded Neville out of the room.

As soon as the door closed, Harry turned to Snape, who was still working at the potions. “Whatever his detention is, I’ll do it too. It’s our fault he was out, even if we had permission.”

Snape peered over his cauldron. “I see. And if I don’t allow it?”

Harry sent him a sheepish smile. “Professor McGonagall mentioned that it would be something helping Hagrid. I guess I don’t need you to allow me to join. I’ll just ask Hagrid if I can come along.”

“It would most likely be in the Forest, Mr. Potter. A forest that is, to students, especially first years, forbidden.”

Harry shrugged. “So it’s either let me serve this detention, or give me detention for being in the Forest when said detention just happened to be taking place.”

Hermione groaned, throwing her head in her hands.

Snape’s expression, however, didn’t change as he watched his students. “Are you sure you were sorted correctly, Mr. Potter? This is a very Gryffindor maneuver, or Hufflepuff, perhaps.”

“Really? I’d think choosing to keep loyalty to the heir of a prominent pureblood house, particularly one who’s heir is lacking in said loyalty, would be a Slytherin technique. Especially when the whole event ended with a personal excuse from another professor.”

“I suppose. I shall speak to Hagrid and see if he would be willing to have another student along, one that apparently knows the forest better than he lets on.” Snape raised an eyebrow. “Or should he be expecting three extra hands?”

Ron shook his head, Hermione still hiding in her hands. “No, sir. I think Harry, here, can handle that. I’d really rather stay in the school. Scrubbing cauldrons, writing lines—”

“—or just in the common room, doing our homework, as we don’t actually have to serve detention.” Hermione picked her head up to glare at Ron.

“Oh. Right. Yeah, just in the school, please.” 

A very long sigh spilled from the professor’s mouth. “I tire of this. Mr. Potter, I will share your request with Hagrid. Do not expect such lenience in the future. And once there is more space between us and tonight, I do expect to hear the actual reasoning behind your midnight excursion. Now, do you think you three can manage to get back over to the Slytherin dungeons without causing me more of a headache?”

They immediately rushed to the door.

Harry, however, hesitated at the threshold. “Thank you, sir. I am sorry for the confusion.”

Snape merely shooed him away.

Neville apologized every time he saw the three of them for the next week, whether they were in class, sitting for a meal, or studying for upcoming exams in the Nook. Ron and Hermione just waved him off, not actually really being impacted by the incident.

Harry, however, couldn’t seem to get away from Neville’s pleading eyes. 

“Nev, I’m serious. It’s fine. There’s a decent chance I would have ended up helping Hagrid out anyway, and it’s not like this is a detention that’s actually going on my record. Honestly. Besides, I need to find my bag that I dropped somewhere out there. This’ll be a school-sanctioned search session for me.”

The gratified look that Neville gave him made him uncomfortable, but he didn’t let his friend notice, even as the Gryffindor near pledged himself to Harry’s service for not letting him do the detention alone even when it was his own fault.

Harry wasn’t lying about his hope to find his bag. He had borrowed an old satchel from Flick, who was so deep in studying that she barely looked twice as she threw it in his face. It sat awkwardly on his shoulder. It was only due to Ron’s threats of sitting on him that he didn’t sneak back into the Forest to find his bag before the detention. His only reprieve was that he had left his school things in the dorm when they took care of Norbert, so the only things he didn’t have access to was his cloak and his research notes.

It didn’t help that Fred and George popped into the Nook one day, talking over each other about how Quirrell was apparently talking to himself in an abandoned classroom, whimpering and sobbing as if someone was threatening him. 

“Do we think it’s Snape doing the threatening?” Ron muttered as the twins disappeared back down the Serpentine Hall.

“If it is, do we care?” Harry responded, sprawled along the couch.

“If he’s getting anxious, though, that might mean he’s about to do something drastic.” Hermione chewed on her bottom lip.

Harry stretched out again, feet nearly missing where Ron was perched on the arm. “Nothing we can do if he is. What are we supposed to do, follow him around and hope we catch him doing something and that an adult will listen to us?”

“One, you know that Snape would listen to you if you brought up concerns to him. For someone who hates your father and started this year hating you, he’s absurdly fond of you.” Ron kicked Harry’s leg in retaliation. “But you’re right. We don’t know what his plan is. And we have exams to study for. Let’s focus on what we know we need to focus on.”

Hermione grinned as she nodded.

The week before exams were set to start saw everyone in a mad rush to absorb every scrap of information the professors were willing to give. 

By the time Friday rolled around, Harry was more than happy to settle at his station with Pansy, relaxing as the repetitive motion of chopping and stirring calmed the flow of memorizations going on in his head. He and Pansy shot each other a satisfied smirk as the smoke above their potion turned the perfect shade of lilac.

“Potter, attend.” 

Harry’s head snapped up at his name.

Snape rolled his eyes as most of the Slytherins and Neville lingered at the door of the classroom, even as Harry shifted in front of the professor’s desk.

“Your… volunteer assignment with Hagrid will be tonight. You will meet Mr. Filch and Longbottom in the entrance hall at eleven o’clock tonight. You may be doing this of your own volition, but I expect the proper respect in regards to your behavior and punctuality.”

“Of course, Professor,” Harry nodded.

“Hm. Dismissed.”

Harry fled to his friends and they headed towards lunch. 

That night, Harry and Neville left the Nook together and headed towards the entrance hall, Harry with an arm thrown around a sniffling Neville.

Filch was grinning with stained teeth as he lit a lantern. “Follow me.”

They left the castle and winded down towards Hagrid’s cabin, the boys ignoring the caretaker’s rambling about the ‘proper punishments’ he wishes still existed.

The moonlight reflected across the scattered clouds, giving the night an eerie feel. Hagrid’s shadow soon bled across the grass below them, and Harry waved as he saw the man fade into view.

“Filch, yer late. I’ve got the boys, you get back to the castle. I want ter get started.” 

The caretaker sneered as he turned back away, muttering to himself.

Hagrid shook his head, watching him go. “Never liked that man.”

“What are we doing, Hagrid? And why do we have to do it at night?” Neville almost whimpered as he shoved his shoulder as close to Harry as he could.

“There’s sommat in these woods. Hurt a unicorn this mornin’. We’re gonna try’n find it. Harry, yeh know what unicorn blood looks like?”

Harry was nodding. “Silver and shiny, yeah.”

“Good. You take Fang, you head towards the clearin’ the centaurs use. Yeh know the way. Neville here and I will take the northern area. If yeh find it, green sparks. If yeh get in trouble, red.”

“Sure. Do Bane and Ronan know we’ll be out here?” Harry asked as he took Fang’s leash.

Hagrid’s skin turned ruddy under his beard. “Ah. I might have mentioned it to Firenze.”

Harry groaned. “Lovely. Are we searching until we find something?”

“Nah, I’ll have Neville shoot up some sparks if we get goin’ too late.”

Harry gave Neville a tight hug and saluted Hagrid with a grin, backing up into the Forest. “See you on the other side!”

Harry gripped Fang’s leash around his wrist as the leaves above him shifted the moonlight around the dark forest. His eyes flew from tree to tree, keeping an eye on Fang’s reactions as well. He could hear the stream he knew was a hundred yards or so to the right of the earth path he was following, an owl chirping behind him, and Fang’s heavy breathing.

No blood.

No movement.

No unicorn.

He let his muscle memory guide him as they headed deeper into the forest. That’s why he was able to hide immediately when he saw movement. He clutched Fang to his chest as he ducked into the underbrush to the side of the path.

Leaves rustled. Like a cloak being dragged along them.

When the forest settled again, Harry slowly pulled Fang further off of the path, towards the stream. “C’mon, boy. We’ll head to the clearing from the east.”

They jumped the stream and crossed through the some of the animal paths that had been made after decades of deer, wolves, and more magical creatures winding through the trees on the same routes. They had only been walking for a few minutes after crossing when Harry froze, hearing the shifting of branches. When the sound shifted into hoofbeats, Harry released a breath.

“Who is lurking in the shadows?”

Harry almost laughed in relief. “Ronan?”

“Ah, Hadrian. You are out unusually late, even for you. How is school?”

“Keeping me out of the forest, unfortunately. Say, has the new foal been born yet? Kabala mentioned last time we talked that Holia was near term.”

“Not quite yet. I will ensure that Hagrid informs you of when it occurs, though I fear it may be while you are away on holiday.” Ronan trailed off, peering into the sky as centaurs tended to do. Harry had yet to talk any of them into showing him how to read the stars. “Mars is unusually bright tonight.”

He may not have learned the stars, but he learned enough from the centaurs to know to listen to the vague observations they give.

Mars. God of war, of conflict.

“Then I will look to Jupiter.”

Ronan gave a small smile. “Indeed.”

It was only the ease that Ronan stood with that gave Harry the strength to keep his place as more noises emerged from behind them.

“Bane.” Harry gave a half bow. “I hear that Mars is unusually bright tonight. May Jupiter guide you.” He looked up at the unofficial leader of the herd.

“Potter. The unicorn you are seeking is just on the other side of the herd clearing. Hagrid is making his way here as well.” Bane nodded to him and disappeared into the brush, Ronan following shortly after.

Harry let out a sigh, bending over to hide his face in Fang’s fur. “Those guys always give me a headache. C’mon Fang. Let’s do this and get out of here.”

They started forward again, Harry only pulling back when the animal path spread into the clearing that the centaurs used to meet with outsiders. Seeing and hearing nothing, he crept forward, Fang beginning to whine at his heels.

A step forward took him directly into a puddle of shiny, silver liquid. Still sticky. Still fresh.

“At least we’re close,” Harry muttered, moving forward again.

His eye caught the shimmer of something further in, a larger mass catching the moonlight.

It was a unicorn, laid across the ground, wound clearly still sluggishly bleeding. But Harry could tell even from the distance that the unicorn was too stiff, legs too unnaturally bent to still be breathing.

Before Harry could flick out his wand, the shadows on the other side of the unicorn shifted, and a cloaked figure emerged, almost feral in the way it circled the unicorn.

Fang gave a yelp and pulled away from Harry’s grasp, scrambling through the debris on the ground with large steps.

One snap of a branch and Harry was frozen under the weight of bloodred eyes staring at him from the cloak.

It took every bit of will power Harry had to slowly flick out his wand. But a second after his eyes met red, he saw white, a blinding bout of pain lacing through his head, causing him to fall to his knees and immediately throw up.

He hadn’t even blinked the pain away before he instinctively jumped to his feet and away from the shadow that fell over him, wand in hand as he tried to clear his vision.

“Calm yourself, Hadrian. You are safe for now.”

Harry collapsed back on his knees at the familiar voice. “Firenze. Thank Merlin. Thank you .”

“Tonight is not a good night for you to be here, Hadrian.” The young centaur didn’t meet Harry’s gaze, instead scanning the woods with his intensely blue eyes.

“That thing… Do you know who that was?” Harry winced as he pulled himself upright.

“Can you not think of one that may be desperate enough to sip from the curse that is unicorn’s blood?” 

Hoofbeats sounded before he could answer.

“Firenze. You found the boy.” Bane pounded into the clearing.

“Yes. I was about to escort him back to Hagrid.” Firenze shifted closer to Bane, and the two began to argue under their breath.

Ronan paused next to Harry. “You are well, Hadrian?”

Harry blinked up at him, thoughts going faster than light. “Please tell me that wasn’t the Dark Lord coming back.”

The restless shifting of hooves answered his question.

“Well, this just got a lot more complicated,” Harry hissed under his breath.

Ronan patted his shoulder. “Hagrid will meet you at the edge of the hippogriff territory. Firenze will guide you.”

Bane pulled away from the argument and stared down at him.

Harry nodded. “Thanks, Ronan. Bane. I hope all goes well with Holia. May the stars guide you until we next meet.” He began walking back towards the closest path he knew that would lead him towards Hagrid. Firenze began walking alongside him.

“Hadrian, there is more going on than you may realize. The constellations do not seem like shapes until you connect them. You might be wise to do something similar with the strange instances you may have seen this past year.” 

Harry just nodded again. 

They walked in silence until they heard Fang’s bark and Neville yelling his name in the distance.

“I will leave you here, Hadrian. Do not dwell on things you cannot control. Focus on the things you can.”

Harry leered up at the centaur. “You’re talking about my exams, aren’t you.”

Firenze’s laughter echoed through the trees. “I do wish you well. Good night, Hadrian.”

As Firenze trotted back into the depths of the woods, Harry took a shivering step back, and immediately tripped. He looked down and saw the strap of his expandable bag wrapped around his foot. “Oh, thank Morgana.”

Neville didn’t even question following Harry back up to the Nook. They weren’t really surprised to see the majority of their friends sprawled around in various states of consciousness. Hermione, of course, was sitting on the edge of a chair, eyes trained on the door.

As soon as Ozzy opened the door, Hermione sprang to her feet and crossed the room, wrapping them both in a hug. “We saw you go into the Forest. Are you okay?” She pulled away to start wiping at Harry’s face, covered in dirt, sweat, and probably vomit. Hermione sighed as she flicked her wand out of her sleeve. “As long as it’s not blood, I swear, Harry.”

He gave her a delirious grin. “All good. Just a headache, my scar.”

She tsked at him before turning to Neville.

Draco appeared from the far corner, eyes downcast. 

He had a blue potion in his hand.

“Headache relief. Might not take away all of the pain, since it’s your magical Boy-Who-Lived headache.” Draco rolled his eyes. “But it should be enough to get to sleep tonight.” 

Harry took the potion and clasped his cousin’s shoulder. Hermione woke the others.

Neville nearly collapsed into Anthony when Harry relayed all of the information he learned that night to his friends, who watched him with hard resolution in their eyes.

“On the bright side, I got my bag back.” 

Harry laughed as pillows, quills, and other odds and ends flew at his head.

The next morning, Flick grabbed Harry immediately after he finished breakfast, pulling him away from the dungeons and his bed, which he desperately wanted to return to. He sighed at the look on her face, and followed her in silence through the Defense Against the Dark Arts Tower, through the Central Hall, out to the bridge heading towards the Bell Tower. She paused there, turning to look out over the railing.

“You know it’s not going to be long before people start asking what side you’re on, Hadrian. Especially if you start telling people that the centaurs think that the Dark Lord has people trying to get him back.” Flick was unusually serious as they looked over the edge of the bridge, watching the Hufflepuff Quidditch team fly underneath them. 

“I know. But I’m a bit too young to admit that we’re making another side, don’t you think?” 

She turned to side eye him. “Another? You don’t want to be Dumbledore’s golden boy?” 

Harry picked at the silver edge of his robes. “I don’t think I was ever going to be that. I like Albus, I do. But even for the sake of the Light, or whatever his slogan is these days, he’s manipulative. He hides things. I’ve spent my entire childhood having the most important things hidden from me. I refuse to follow that.” 

“And obviously the Dark is not going to work. So, an eleven-year-old is going to resurrect the Grey?” 

Harry sighed as he leaned against the railing. “There’s a few of us, but I guess for the sake of politics, my name will be the headliner. But no matter what I do, I’d be in the middle of everything. Might as well make it be something I actually stand behind.” 

“It won’t be easy.” 

“I’ve only been in the wixen world a few months, Flick, and nothing so far made me think any decision I make was going to be easy.” 

“It’ll be a lot. Navigating the other sides, putting your people in power, juggling the people you don’t know who want a part of it.” 

Harry turned to meet her gaze. “I guess I’ll need plenty of people to help advise me. And by me, I mean Hermione.” 

Flick laughed as she knocked their shoulders together. “You’ll have me there as long as I’m standing, Heir Potter. Plenty of others as well. Between Marcus and I, I think we’ll be able to tell friend from foe.” 

Harry sighed again. “I guess I just didn’t think it would happen so quickly. I haven’t even taken my exams, Flick. And full-grown adults are watching my every move to see how I’m going to overtake the entire political realm.” 

“The Dark Lord left you with more than just being the Boy-Who-Lived, Hadrian. You’re also heir, Lord assumed, to two of the most prominent houses in our world because of his reign. And you’re already doing the job. You’ve collected plenty of followers throughout the Houses, and those who know their parents or older siblings enough will start to make those connections on your behalf.” 

“Not followers, Flick. Not yet. Allies, if not friends.” 

She rolled her eyes. “As you wish, Lord Potter-Black.” 

He shoved her shoulder, and she laughed as she went to shove him back, only for him to start sprinting towards the grounds with her just behind.