“Brooms are not ridiculous” Harry countered, “and I’d like to see you play quidditch on one of those things, it would probably eat the quaffle, and half the team too.”

“Harry” Cat sighed, “you really need to get over this issue with dragons. First of all, Opall would NEVER eat anyone, her kind don’t eat mammals. They eat fish, sargrasso and the occasion bird.” Seeing the look on Emma’s face, Cat explained. “One of his teachers was less than careful with his first exposure to dragons, it was one of those nasty sort; biting, venomous, bad attitude. I’m afraid its traumatized him.” She sighed, wrapping her arm around Harry and giving him a comforting hug as she finished her explanation.

“Well, we’ll just have to undo the damaged then, won’t we.” Emma smiled. “Opall is a good girl, she’s very calm and Fabiana rides her all the time. She would be the best to start you out on, and its obvious she already has taken an interest in you.”…..

I am greatly concerned Orpha, you didn’t see her last night; the anger in her eyes….it was positively frightening. I honestly thought she might try to kill me.” Deo insisted as the image of Orpha flickered before him.

“You know as well as I do that she would never harm an ally of our clan, unless of course she felt you were a threat to her husband or son.” Orpha added, raising a brow as she stared at him.

“Never! Her son was with Aeranna and it was her husband that stopped her from doing anything rash. We were discussing YOUR clan, Maharet in particular.” Deo countered. “What is going on, Orpha, I have the feeling things are far worse than you led me to believe. The man looks like he’s just this side of the living and to say she is on edge is an understatement. The only one of them that looks happy and healthy is their son.”

“They will all be fine as soon as Sirius is healed. Kitty is worried about him, and I have several ‘concerns’ about the state of her health, I believe she may be with child, but I suggest you not say a word to that to anyone, least of all her. And as far as Maharet is concerned, drop that subject completely and let me do what needs to be done.”

“And if she comes here looking for them? If she tries to attack my land, my people?”

“Then let Kitty take care of her.” Orpha replied dryly. “She’s more than capable of dealing with her, despite what Maharet may think. She’s underestimated Kitty since the day she was born, and it will be her undoing. And considering the mood she’s put my little girl in, Kitty would be more than willing to prove the point with the business end of her sword.”

“Ahh yes, the sword. Since when has the sword appeared at her beck and call? It was hovering near her shoulder last night, it only faded when her husband calmed her down.” Deo asked

“As I said earlier, she’s much more powerful than she’s given credit for. Everyone seems to think she rules due to her father’s strength, but the truth of the matter is, he rules due to hers. We are fortunate that she has such a good temperament, she loves her family and has always been a fairly obedient child. She is well suited to such power.”

“But if she should be pushed too far?” Deo questioned, already knowing the answer in his heart.

“Why do you think I sent them away? I sent them to you because I know you and Mac Lir together can keep her, and more importantly her clannad safe from any dangers. She needs to rest and relax as much as her husband does, they both need to heal and grow strong. If she’s pushed much further I fear she may well snap.” Orpha said. “Which is why I want you to make sure she’s not pestered by your people. I know they consider her a demi-god of sorts, and I know they count on her for certain things. I’m sure she will gladly heal any child brought to her, but please, for the love of heaven, the last thing she needs are people clamouring for her to make them, their livestock, their land fertile. She must concentrate on her husband now.” She narrowed her eyes as she added, “I’m sure you can imagine what a state she would be in should anything happen to him. After all, he’s the only one who seems to be capable of calming her down anymore.” …….

Orpha smiled slyly as Deo’s image faded out of view. “Well, that should give him plenty to think about, AND give our little girl time to rest and heal. Merlin, is there any word from Albus’s school? Have things gotten any better there?”

“Yes, I’ve had a little chat with that Primogen, Raul. Nice fellow, just a bit torn up inside, conflict of loyalties it seems. I’m fairly certain he’ll do the right thing, but if not, Daedelus will take care of matters himself. I’ll go back and speak with Cash this evening, he was busy trying to talk Daedelus out of hurting Raul when I stopped by; seemed a bit more important than anything I had to tell him.” Merlin smirked, “But what about Kitty? Any news on the baby front? And Sirius, is he any better?”

“I haven’t spoken to them yet, although it seems our little girl’s mood swings are getting worse.”

“Considering everything she’s been through? I can hardly blame her for that, I would have lost my temper long ago….or was it another crying jag?” Merlin winked as Orpha rolled her eyes.

“NO, it was a temper tantrum, seems it was bad enough to call up her sword.” She paused as she saw Merlin’s eyes grow wide. “Exactly, AND it seems Sirius took care of the situation, calmed her down quickly avoiding any major problems.” She added, smiling as Merlin’s smile grew wider and wider. “And what about your other one? Are you ready for him to come visit us? I plan to have him here this weekend. Although I am a bit concerned about Duncan and Paddy. I know Luke will be fair, but those two…” she sighed.

“True, I still find it hard to believe Duncan has actually accepted ‘anyone’ as his baby sisters husband.” He laughed, “But Sirius does tend to hold his own, and the fact that they have a similar sense of humour does help.”

“That and his fondness for children” Orpha agreed. “Edana seems to be a bit lost without he and Kitty here to spoil her, although I dare say Paddy is enjoying the extra time with his daughter.” Orpha took a seat next to Merlin and continued. “What of the other one? Is he fond of children like Sirius is? Do you think he’ll be happy or upset if Kitty is carrying his child? Rick seems to have a great deal of faith in him, however Cash and Hamish are far from convinced.” …….

Harry laughed as he tried to steer the cloud, it was worse than the one time he had borrowed Dudley’s skateboard, but it was much more fun. He had finally gotten the hang of moving to the left and right, but controlling the speed was another matter completely. Pausing to hear the adults still discussing details, Harry decided to keep practicing with the cumulus; as his mother had referred to it. Standing near the door, Harry began manoeuvring around the room, becoming more and more confident as his skill increased.

He managed to steer it around the bed, through the balcony door and back into the room before it got away from him, suddenly speeding up and dumping him unceremoniously on the bed. He lay there for a few seconds, trying to figure out what he had done wrong, when he thought he heard a whimpering sound near his ear.

Lifting his head slightly, he listened keenly, hoping to hear the sound again, but instead, he felt a sharp pain on his left earlobe. Yelping, Harry popped off of the bed, his eyes growing large as he saw the toy dragon on the bed staring at him. It’s eyes watching him warily as it whimpered softly, trying to extend a wing, one that had obviously been injured when Harry landed on it.

“Are you alright? I’m sorry little fellow, I didn’t mean to hurt you.” Harry cooed as the tiny dragon looked up at him, whimpering a little more loudly now. “Come on, I’ll take you to Mum, she’ll know what to do for you.” Just as he was about to pick up the dragon, Harry hesitated, “You don’t bite, do you?”

As if in answer, the dragon scurried into Harry’s hands, quickly making itself comfortable by trying to climb up the sleeves of Harry’s robes. “Hey, stop that, it tickles.” Harry laughed as he cradled the shining dragon in his arms. Harry’s mouth hung open as the once purplish dragon began to slowly change colours, taking on the red hue of his robes. “That’s a neat trick” Harry commented watching as the dragon’s skin started to shimmer as he pet it.

“Hey, Mum, look at what I found.” He called out as he entered the sitting room. “It was on my bed, I thought it was a stuffed toy that you or Aeranna left for me. Oh, and it changes colours, it used to be purple, but its getting redder by the minute…..that’s a good thing, right?”

“I’m not sure, let me see.” Cat replied, a slightly worried look on her face. She wasn’t familiar with any dragons that small that could change their colour. “Emma, Tara have you been breeding new species or something? I’ve never seen one like this before.” She suddenly laughed as the dragon tried to climb into her sleeves as well “He’s certainly friendly. Come here you little devil.”

Within moments everyone was gathered around, listening to how Harry had found the dragon as they all studied it and Cat fixed its wing. “I’m not sure, but I think this might be Opall’s, the one we thought had died. Check the underside of his tail, is there a strange marked there?”

“Looks mighty strange to me,” Sirius confirmed, “in fact, it looks an awful lot like Harry’s scar.” He watched as the baby stared up at all of them then suddenly scurried into Cat’s lap, burying its head in the folds of her dress. “Looks like you’ve found yourself a new friend.”

“Very funny, Sirius, very funny. But the best place for him is with his mother, right Emma.”

“No, I don’t think so.” Emma contradicted, “He’s too small, she’d never be able to feed him, he’ll die of starvation if we send him back to Opall. Do you think your son would like to take care of him? He seems to have taken a liking to him.” She added, winking at Harry as he grinned happily.

“Really? Mum, can I?” Harry asked excitedly. He held his breath as he watched Sirius and Cat exchange looks.

“It’s a big responsibility” Sirius warned him, “and you’ll be very busy while we’re here. And don’t forget, he’ll get bigger, he won’t always be tiny and cute. One day he’ll be big..”

“Perhaps not.” Tara interrupted, “I don’t mean to spoil anyone’s plans, but please remember; All of the other hatchlings in his clutch died. Chances are very good he won’t make it either, no matter how much care he receives. I think having someone foster him would be his best chance, but you need to understand that it simply may not matter.” She felt her heart twinge as she saw the sad look in the boy’s eyes, he was so much like his mother, it was obvious he had a gentle heart that was so prevalent amongst the MacLeods.

“But I can try, can’t I?” Harry asked softly as his fingers trailed along the dragon’s back, smiling as it shimmered once more.

“Of course you can, Harry.” Cat said, “Just remember what Tara told you. It may not matter, and I don’t want you to feel guilty if he doesn’t make it. But he certainly seems to like you, look at the way he shines when you touch him.”

“Do all the dragons do that?” Harry asked.

“No, not all, a few of the elementals may, but its really not that common.” Emma explained as she took a long hard look at the boy. It seems her father may have been mistaken, there was far more power in him than either of them had ever hoped. “And speaking of which, its time you begin your training. I’m sure your mother will watch your new pet until you’re done. In fact, the springs may do him as much good as your father. All babies need to be kept warm, even dragons.”……

Sirius shook his head as he watched Cat, “He’ll be fine, gra, you know that.”

“I know, I know. I just wish I could be with him the first time he’s introduced to the dragons. I know Emma promised us she’d only expose him to small ones today, but still.”

“Do you want to go with him? I can always rest here until you’re feeling more comfortable with what Harry has to do.” he offered. He smiled with surprise as Cat wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head against his chest.

“No, as much as I want to be there for Harry, I have to let him do this alone. Besides, I don’t want you to have to endure your pain any longer than you have to.” She stood on her toes, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek “Just let me change and we’ll get going.”

“Do you want me to change?” Siri asked, a bit unsure of exactly where they were heading off to.

“No, I’ll bring along a change of clothes for you. You’re going to be spending a lot of time in the springs. I hope you don’t mind if I apparate us there, it’s a long, hard road to the volcano and I don’t honestly think you have the strength to make it under your own power.” she felt a ‘fuzzy’ feeling in her stomach as her fingers gently trailed along his cheek, their eyes locking as his arms slowly encircled her. “Sirius, you’re hardly in any condition to try ‘anything’ with me.” she reminded him.

“Humour me” was his whispered reply. Instead of kissing her lips, Sirius bent his head to place several well aimed kisses on her neck. He felt her body tense, but within moments she had melted against him, her hands moving through his hair as his lips continued their assault. He thrilled as he felt her standing on her toes once more, as if pushing her body to meet his lips. “Gra, are you ‘positive’ I’m not well enough to do anything? After all, if a Mastiff and a Chihuahua can manage.”

“Very funny, Mr. Black” Cat smirked, pulling herself far enough away from him to look into his eyes. “And I take it you consider ‘yourself’ to be akin to a Mastiff?” She was barely able to hold in her laughter as she saw the mischievous look in his eyes.

“You bet, my Mastiff and your Chihuahua,” he winked, “ what do you say?”

“I say you better think long and hard before you go calling my womb a Chihuahua, after all, it ‘is’ the place our children are supposed to grow and be nurtured.” she replied snarkily, only to pause as she saw a strange, contented look suddenly pass over his face. “Siri? What is it? Please don’t tell me you like the idea of that whole doggy nickname thing.”

“No. No. But I do like the sound of the rest of it.” he kissed her tenderly as he paraphrased her words. “OUR children growing and being nurtured inside of you.” He smiled as he saw her blush deeply. “Now, gra, don’t go getting shy on me. After all, its not like you can take it back and pretend you didn’t say it; I’ve already engraved it on my heart.”

“You’re hopeless, Siri, absolutely hopeless.” she sighed. “I need to change into something besides my pyjamas. Just stay here and try to behave.”

“I take it that means no peeking?” he asked as she walked away, only to laugh out loud as she turned around and gave him a look that could have melted stone. “Alright, alright, I’ll stay right here and be a good boy….ya killjoy.” he teased, laughing once more as she made a comment regarding the state of his mind under her breath……

Harry gulped loudly as he watched the large snake-like creature making its way across the deep lake that surrounded the Eastern side of the palace. It reminded him of the Basilisk he had fought in the chamber during his second year. It wasn’t until it got closer that he realized it was not a snake at all, but a dragon with a long snout and large dog-like ears.

He watched it swim around a school of porpoise and several smaller dragons that were frolicking near a small island before it finally came to a rest in front of them.

Harry was dumbfounded as he realized how large the creature was, twenty-five feet of glistening scales and muscle. Thick, fleshy ‘whiskers’ covered the animal’s lower jaw and its black eyes seemed to look permanently downwards. As he moved closer he noticed that its colouring changed from a dark grey on it’s back to a dingy pink towards it’s underside.

“Get on its back, right behind me.” Emma directed, “hang on by squeezing his sides with your knees. We’re going to start out with some small ones and work our way up from there. We‘ll begin your education at the rookery, Fabiana will be there with Muir by now.”

“What should I do if I fall off?” Harry asked as he carefully mounted the creature, feeling slightly relieved when he realized it’s scales were not as slick as he had originally thought.

“Swim would be my first suggestion. As long as you stay off the bottom you’ll be fine. These nathair-muir are good for transportation, but they are nearly blind, those feelers on his chin are for finding food on the bottom, I doubt they actually see what they eat.”

“Lovely” he sighed, squeezing his legs tighter together as the dragon silently slid into the warm waters of the lake. “Lady Emma? What is Mum going to do today? Is she going to heal him?”

“She will start, but considering your father’s condition it may take several days.” She explained. “She told us she will be at the mineral springs near the volcano, it should help leach the poison out of his body. I’m sure he’ll be looking much better by the time you return this evening.” She watched as the boy nodded then fell silent, his eyes full of concern. “Let me know if you have any questions regarding anything, your parents are very anxious for you to learn all that you can.” she added, hoping that he would open up to her.

After a few minutes of staring at the playful dragons and porpoise, Harry‘s eye was caught by something white and fluttery several yards away from them. “Lady Emma, what are those white things over there?” he asked, pointing towards a large cluster of lily pads.

“Are you referring to the sithiche? They are very sweet, but I’m afraid they don’t last very long. In a few days time this lake will be covered with them, when we get closer you’ll be able to see their eggs. They come in all shapes and sizes, the children call those lily pad dragons, for obvious reasons.” she explained, smiling softly as she saw the sense of wonder and excitement growing in his eyes.

“You’ll be working with another student, she’s a year or so younger than you. Her name is Fabiana Grisanti, she’s been with us for several weeks now. Her family is powerful and well know to your mother, and just so you aren’t surprised when you see her, she tends to start the day off with morning exercise, in this case, several laps around the lake.” Emma added, recalling the hurried conversation she and the Rion had had this morning regarding Harry’s ‘sheltered’ life. “I’ve asked her to wear a swimming suit, but she grew up in a much ‘warmer’ climate where clothes weren’t particularly necessary.”

Lady Emma had to turn her face away from the young Tiarna before she laughed out loud. The poor boy looked as if he had accidentally swallowed an insect. “I shouldn’t worry, she’ll cover up if she sees it makes you uncomfortable. But you must understand, she hails from South America, near Venezuela, its very hot there and people are neither ashamed nor titillated by the exposure of flesh.” she stated in a very matter-of-fact way. “It is something you would do well to remember if you intent to continue your mother’s work. She is extremely open minded about others, …sometimes to a fault.”…..

“Ok, Sirius, strip down and get into the water.” Cat requested as she sat the basket containing the baby dragon down near the spring, “I need you to soak for a while and then I’ll give you a good massage. But I’m warning you, it will probably hurt, I’ll have to rub hard to get deep into your muscles.”

“Any muscles in particular you’re worried about?” Sirius winked as he undid the fastenings of his robes. He paused as he saw an unexpected look on her face, he was expecting her to tease him back, or maybe roll her eyes as she had been doing whenever he tried to push their relationship to the physical level. But now her eyes looked so sad and concerned, as if she suddenly felt the weight of the world on her shoulders. “Gra? What is it?”

“I told you before, Sirius, I’m worried about the poison pooling in your muscles. Your blood I can fix, but your muscles.”

“Shhh, gra, mo ionúin, it can’t be that bad, can it?” Trying to make her laugh, he let his eyes stare down at his groin. “I promise, it can take it, honest.” However, instead of hearing her giggle or smirk he felt her hand on his chest, resting gently over his heart.

“Sirius, your heart is a muscle too. If I can’t get the poison out of you quickly enough, or if it pools in your heart…”

“Shhh, it won’t happen.” Sirius promised, kissing her softly. “I know I look pretty bad, but I promise you, I’m strong enough to survive this. I’m not going to die and leave you to raise our sons by yourself.” he swore, his fingers twisting the end of the thick, single braid her hair was plaited into.

“Sons? Sirius, not this phantom baby of yours again.” Cat sighed, but smiled all the same. “I have enough with you and Harry, I can hardly keep either one of you out of trouble and your wishing another one on me?” She joked weakly.

Sirius smiled tenderly as he wrapped his arms around her. “No, gra, I’m wishing many of them on both of us.” ….

< In blue, have Cat help him undress, touching, kissing - he wraps his arms around her as his lips find her neck, revelling in the warmth and soft feminine scent as he continued where he left off that morning> After some effort on both of their parts, Sirius slowly eased his way into the bubbling spring. “So, gra, what makes this so good for me? Besides the heat and bubbles I mean.” he asked as he watched her mix together several items with a pestle and mortar.

“Well, you have the minerals that leech out from the rocks, the kelp and algae that comes in from the sea water, and when you’re done, I’m going to be rubbing a mixture of olive oil, white tea, rosemary and a few other items into you.” Seeing the questioning look on his face, she explained. “The rubbing will help release the poison from your muscles, and the mixture will help open your pores and carry it away.” She raised an eyebrow as she saw a smirk on his face. “Annnnd… what’s on your mind, Sirius?”

“Just wondering something.” He grinned as he moved to the edge of the spring.

“Dare I even ask?” Cat sighed; having the distinct feeling he was recovering much quicker than she ever dared to hope.

Shrugging, Sirius smiled as he reached up to take her hand, gently pulling her to the very edge of the spring. “I was just wondering if I stay like this for the massage too?”

“You mean in the water?”

“No, I mean in the nude.” He whispered, stretching up to kiss her deeply. His other hand reached up, gently pulling her down to her knees as his lips continued to press against hers. Perhaps it was the hot springs, or Dia, or maybe it was simply having her so near to him, to hear everyone calling them husband and wife; but whatever the reason he was feeling better with every passing minute……

Draco scowled as he left the Slytherin common room; His mother had had him return to school a day earlier than normal, just to keep him safe from his father’s temper. Part of his mind kept nagging at him, telling him he should have stayed behind to protect her, but he knew how foolhardy that would be. He may be his father’s only son, the only child, but he knew better than to think his status would protect him against Lucius’s temper. No, the only hope he has was to make his father proud, to show him how strong he could be, and to obey his father’s every word.

Stopping suddenly, Draco felt a chill pass through him as he walked through the always dim halls of the dungeon. He turned around quickly to see nothing behind him and only the flaming torches to either side of him. The hair on the back of his neck was standing on end as he slowly turned back around. He had been positive the he had felt an icy breath grazing over his skin when his back was turned but no matter how hard he looked he saw nothing but shadows lining the surrounding hall.

Shaking off the uneasy feeling, Draco slowly began his walk towards the great hall, hoping to find someone, anyone there. His feeling of unease was growing with each passing step, but quickly turned into a consuming fear as he heard the low growl echoing through the dungeon. With the speed of a frightened rabbit, Draco scrambled to the side of the statue of Melinda the Maleficent, crouching down as he waited to see what had made such a noise.

Once again he felt an icy chill passing over his neck as he clung to the statue’s stone skirt. Only this time he also felt what could only be fingernails and bony fingers resting on his shoulder. Turning slowly, Draco felt what little colour was left in his face draining as a horrific, skull-like face stared back at him, it’s thin bloodless lips curling back in a mocking smile, revealing a set of double, yellowing fangs.

“All alone, are you?” the monster taunted as its grip tightened on his shoulder. His eyes gave off a faint red glow as they focused in on the boy. “No red hair, no friends,” he paused as he sniffed at Draco, “no innocence left in you, a withered, jaded heart…. I’d say you’ll do nicely.” He pronounced as his lips pulled back further, revealing both upper AND lower fangs.

He smirked as he heard the boy whimper; he could see inside the heart of mortals and this child hadn’t shown his fellow beings a shred of mercy in many, many years. True, it was partially due to how he had been raised, but that really didn’t matter, it was a person’s actions that spoke for them, not their circumstances. After all, everyone had choices, even the Nosferatu.

“Daedelus, NO” a voice shouted as the sound of running feet became clear. “Set him down, he’s a student.”

“He is a monster waiting to be released.” Daedelus countered as Hamish and Rick skidded to a halt in front of him. “He has nothing but hate and anger inside of him, he’s slowly dying from the inside out. I’ll just be moving the process along.” He glared at Hamish as the Gangrel stepped nearer to him. “Mind yourself childer.” Although he softened considerably when he felt Hamish’s hand resting gently on his arm, a gentle reminder of the Gangrels connection to his Angel.

Leave it to her clan to behave like this; they were so unafraid of him, of all of his clan. They had never been afraid to walk into their havens, their covens, even as newly made kinder the MacLeod Gangrels instinctively knew not to fear the Nosferatu. “Hamish, you are not of my clan, your promises to these people mean nothing to me. I’ve already told this to Cash.”

“I know, but our promises mean something to us and to Angel.” Hamish explained softly. “Believe me, if it was up to me I’d have taken his sorry self out a long time ago. But Angel sees him as not yet a man, which means she seems to think there….MAY… be something redeemable within him. Although to be honest I would argue the point with her.” He sighed as he motioned for Rick to take the trembling boy from Daedelus’s hands.

“Please, Daedelus, for Angel’s sake, let him be.” Rick whispered as he slowly pulled Draco into the safety of his arms.

“I thought only red-haired children and this Gryffindor household was under her direct protection.” Daedelus replied, “From what I can see, he belongs to neither, there is no red on him anywhere.”

“Not all the Gryffindors wear red all the time,” Hamish cautioned, “although you are correct, this is not a Gryffindor, he is a Slytherin.”

“You sound less than pleased by the sound of your voice.” Daedelus commented, hoping to get more information out of Cash’s second. The moment he saw Hamish’s bright eyes staring into his own, he realized the man knew exactly what he was after. “Rick, take that beast somewhere else, somewhere far away from here. Daedelus and I are going to take a little walk and discuss some of the nuances of life at a wizarding school.”

“Cash won’t mind?” Rick questioned, raising an eyebrow at Hash’s request.