Dragon Heartstring

Dragon Heartstring, Chapter Two

An ear-splitting screech echoed through the grounds of Hogwarts, straight from the throat of the five year old Norwegian Ridgeback. The amazing sight of a fifty-foot tower of flame quickly followed the sound. Harry watched in horror as Ron dived spectacularly out of the fiery paths way, only just missing a death of burning glory.

"Ron! Keep your eyes open! My insulation charm won't stand up to a direct hit from that creature," Professor Ashling commanded, shouting across from the other side of the 'pen'.

Harry and Ron had volunteered to demonstrate how to capture a dragon. It had seemed like a good idea at the time...

"Watch your back Harry" Charlie shouted just in time, as Norbert's whip-like tail took a swing at Harry from behind.

Harry ducked, hearing the slicing of air above his head. When he looked up, Charlie and Professor Ashling were lassoing the dragon around its neck. The creature struggled against them for a while, then began to calm. Harry and Ron both got to their feet when Norbert was lying peacefully on the ground, now only smoking a little at the nostrils. Charlie was stroking his neck gently, and this relaxed the giant beast considerably.

"As you can see," Professor Ashling said, gasping for breath as she spoke, "This particular breed of Dragon is very cunning and can easily coordinate an attack, which is why you have to be especially careful when dealing with them. However, as you can see with Norbert, human raised dragons can be calmed with a few simple techniques, and years of getting them to trust you!"

At that moment a huge explosion erupted from Greenhouse number five where the Slytherin and Ravenclaw fifth years were having Herbology with Professor Sprout. In an instant the whole class had turned at the noise to look upon a horrendous scene of fire and shattered glass. Screams could be hears across the length of the Quidditch pitch. However, just as quickly as they had turned, the roar made by Norbert had them turning back. The explosion had shocked the now violent dragon.

Charlie had been knocked clear by one of Norbert's kicking legs and Professor Ashling was keeping hold of the rope in a vain attempt to control the fire breathing end of the dragon. Hagrid rushed forward and grabbed hold of the rope, and with his giant strength, managed to ground the creature's head.

Professor Ashling ran over to Charlie, quickly helping him to his feet. He couldn't put his entire weight on his left foot, but the damage was minor. The two dragon handlers pulled out their wands and rushed to Hagrid's side.

Neither one had spoken Harry noticed, yet they were acting together, as if communicating in another way. They both just seemed to 'know' what each other was thinking. Harry's thoughts were interrupted as the sound of Norbert's high-pitched scream jerked him back into reality.

When the noise ceased for a couple of brief seconds, Charlie and Professor Ashling both shouted a charm, their wands pointed directly at Norbert's eye (the weakest point of a Dragon's body).

"Ashen Noctem!"

Harry watched in amazement with the rest of the class. Out of Charlie's wand spurned an entanglement of vivid red magic, which entwined perfectly with the identical orange from Professor Ashling's. The spell hit Norbert exactly on target, and the dragon fell asleep in an instant.

Harry had never seen anything like it before, and judging by the look on Ron's face, neither had he. Last year, Harry had witnessed Charlie along with several other Wizards try to keep a dragon under control. It had been very difficult and exhausting even just to watch, yet, Norbert had just gone down by the hand on one Wizard and one Witch (excluding Hagrid, still holding onto the rope!)

Both of them had the panic stricken expression on their faces that had spread throughout the class. Smoke could be seen rising from the greenhouses in the distance. The panic was short lived between them however.

"All of you, Great Hall, Now!" Professor Ashling commanded, shouting above the shocked fifth years.

The Hufflepuffs were quick to comply, but a good majority of Gryffindors remained where they were.

Professor Ashling, Charlie, Ron and Harry all exited the dragon's 'pen' to stand with the more stubborn members of the class.

"I'll assume you didn't hear the order, so I'll repeat it," Charlie said, "Great Hall, Now. That means all of you. Go!"

"Charlie, we have to help!" Ron said.

"No way. Now get inside the castle, end of discussion."

Hermione seeing the urgency of the situation, tugged at Ron's arm, and managed to get him, along with everyone else up to the castle.

They walked in dumbfounded silence, and Harry couldn't help but stare at the destruction on the other side of the grounds. He could see Charlie and Professor Ashling running across to the Green houses, as well as several other professors rushing out from inside the castle. The scene was horrific. What had happened?

Harry entered the entrance hall and stopped as the others proceeded to the Great Hall as instructed. Ron turned and saw Harry staring into space. He walked over to his best friend, joined by Hermione who was still holding onto his arm.

"Harry?" Ron asked. Harry looked at Ron at the sound of his name. "Harry, you all right?" said Ron, a hint of worry in his voice.

"I was meant to be in there," Harry said quietly.

"What?" Hermione said confused, finally releasing Ron's arm.

Harry realised how odd he must be appearing to his friends, and so he pulled out his timetable, the one they had received that very morning, the first day back at school. He showed it to Hermione and Ron.

"I had a misprint. According to this, I should have been in Herbology this afternoon," Harry said.

"Yeah," Ron said, not quite understanding what the big deal was, "and according to this you've got potions with the first years on Wednesday. Actually..." Ron continued thoughtfully, "I wouldn't put that past Snape!"

"You don't understand," Harry said urgently. "Look, this is probably going to sound rather melodramatic, but you have to admit that whenever something like this happens, it's generally in a plot to kill me."

"Your right Harry," Hermione said, "That does sound melodramatic! I know it's terrible, but the explosion was an accident. I'm sure everyone's fine, you can't start blaming yourself, and I know that's what you're doing" she finished quickly as Harry started to defend himself.

"Come on," Ron said, "Lets go and find Ginny, she's probably panicking unnecessarily as well!"

"Hey!" Harry said indignantly, "I don't relish in being compared to you little sister you know!"

Ron laughed, his comment having achieved the desired effect, and the trio walked into the Great Hall, which was now full of Hogwarts students, chatting loudly about what had really happened in Greenhouse number five, a place Harry was sure that none of them had been at the time of the explosion.

An hour or so passed until any news came to the Great Hall. Harry was sitting with a large group of Gryffindors, telling Fred and George about the Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson he had been receiving, along with the identity of the new teacher. The twins told Harry that Kari had stayed with them for the majority of the summer holidays, and that she and Charlie had spent the last two weeks (the two that Harry had spent at the burrow) in Paris, on a romantic break.

All the current Weasley students were delighted at their new DatDA teacher, and couldn't wait to see their older brother. They didn't have to wait long, as at that moment Charlie, along with all the Professors, and the majority of the absent students walked into the Great Hall.

The teachers looked exhausted, they were filthy, scratched and pale. Charlie was limping slightly, leaning on Kari for support. The students were in a similar condition, and although shaken, they appeared unharmed.

'They're not all here though' Harry found himself thinking.

Professor Dumbledore led the teachers' party up to the main table at the far end of the hall, signalling for the accompanying students to sit down with their peers.

He didn't need to clap for attention as the student body were already sitting in strained silence, desperate for an explanation.

"No doubt, you are all wondering what happened today," Professor Dumbledore said in his usual calm tone of voice. "I can assure you that no one was killed, and that only one student is what can be described as seriously injured, however he will be fine given time."

This statement caused many students to break their silence to whisper to each other. 'Who was it?' 'What happened?' 'Where's...' All these sorts or questions were being posed around Harry, but no one had the answers.

"Quiet, quiet," Dumbledore said patiently over the rising din, "I will account for you best I can what happened, and then the subject will be changed, and lessons resumed.

Now, as I'm sure you all know, the incident occurred in Greenhouse number five, during the fifth year's lesson. The class were dealing with two rather aggressive species of plant, two species which we have now discovered, do not get on well in confined spaces. Without going into too much detail, as I don't want to bore you, a fight broke out over land, certain chemicals were mixed, and Greenhouse number five is no more. Professor Sprout noticed the danger, and all students had been removed from the immediate danger zone before the explosion took place.

Madame Pomfrey in the Infirmary is treating any of your fellow students who are not currently in the Great Hall for minor cuts and burns. There is no need to worry; they will be joining you shortly.

Now, if that is all, oh no, wait one moment! I do have one further announcement to make, concerning the dragon currently on school grounds, something I'm sure many of you have already noticed."

Indeed they had, Harry knew. One of the more extravagant theories to how the explosion had occurred involved the dragon breathing a tunnel flame the length of the Quidditch pitch into the Greenhouse area.

"We have two new members of staff joining us today," Professor Dumbledore continued.

'Two new members?' Harry thought.

"May I introduce Professor Kari Ashling, our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, and Mister Charlie Weasley, who will be taking over Madame Hooch's recently vacated position. For those of you who are unaware, Madame Hooch has been given a job refereeing World Class Quidditch, and I hope you join me in wishing her the best of luck.

What was I saying? Ah yes, the Dragon. I will have to ask you to stay away from the creature when out of lesson time. Although I am assured he is quite safe and very well trained, he is still a Dragon, so please be careful. You will all see Norbert during your Care of Magical Creatures, Defence Against the Dark Arts or Charms lessons.

I think that is all. You may now all return to your classrooms, but may I ask the fifth years to remain behind for a moment. Thank you."

With that, students filed out of the Great Hall, all slightly depressed at having to return to lessons. Harry hardly noticed however, as his mind had once again drifted into deep thought. What Dumbledore had said made perfect sense on a logical level, yet something at the back of Harry's mind kept telling him that the Headmaster had missed something. There was something wrong. Something to do with him.

Harry shook the thought off. He'd been slightly paranoid ever since the events of last term. Up until that point Harry had thought of himself as infallible, though he'd never admit it to anyone. It was the moment that he had seen Cedric die. That was the moment when he realised that death was very real, and it wasn't something that happened to other people, or before you were old enough to remember it...

His parents. If it hadn't of been for them, Harry would probably have never escaped Lord Voldemort for the second time. They gave him the courage to carry on. They were the only reason he hadn't broken down into an unrecognisable mess over the summer. They were the reason he could face being back at Hogwarts. He was Harry Potter, the boy who lived, and who was determined to do his parents proud.

As it turned out, Professor Dumbledore had just wanted to inform the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs that they were to return to their dormitories to change before proceeding to their classroom, and to let Ravenclaw and Slytherin off for the remainder of the day.

Harry had changed back into his school robes (which he had found in the exact place where his current outfit had been before he had summoned it onto himself), and was now sitting back at his desk, waiting for Professor Ashling to arrive for the second time that day.

"Who do you think it was that got injured in the explosion?" Hermione asked, leaning over to whisper to Ron and Harry.

"I don't know," Harry said, welcoming the distraction from the boredom that was beginning to re-settle in his mind.

"Easy enough to find out though," Ron said, "just look and see who's missing at dinner. If everyone else only had minor injuries, then there'll only be one person absent this evening."

"I guess so," Hermione sighed, "We'll just have to wait and see", and with that, she settled herself back in her seat.

Ron shot an amused look at Harry. If they had never rescued Hermione from that troll, the brightest witch in Hogwarts would probably never be bothered with such mysterious gossip.

Professor Ashling and Charlie walked into the classroom some minutes later, and proceeded to open a discussion on Dragons and their behaviourisms. Hermione, as always, put her hand up for every question, but the surprise in the lesson was the number of questions Ron knew the correct answer to. Charlie was visibly proud of his little brother's knowledge on his trade, as his grin broadened with every question Ron got right. Charlie was sitting at the edge of the classroom watching his girlfriend in action. He had limped slightly on his way in, but was standing considerably more steadily than when Harry had last seen him, (no doubt due to Madame Pomfrey!).

The Dragon quizzing only lasted half an hour, and then the lesson ended. A class full of happy students left the room and headed for their dormitories to enjoy the end of their first day back. Harry, Ron and Hermione stayed behind however to talk to Charlie.

"How's your ankle?" Hermione asked.

"Much better thanks Hermione. Are you lot okay? No hidden injuries your trying to be brave about?" This last comment was clearly directed at Harry and Ron.

"We're fine thanks," Harry said honestly.

"Not even a scratch," Ron added.

"Good to know," Charlie replied, "You were both amazing, and Ron! How do you know so much about dragons? Have you actually been listening to me all these years?" Charlie asked with a cheeky Weasley grin.

"Very impressive," a voice from behind them agreed, "all three of you. Take ten points each, and Ron, award yourself an extra five, I didn't expect anyone to get that last question!" Professor Ashling had made her way back into the classroom after taking her papers into the office at the top of the spiral staircase in the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom.

Harry had always thought that this office was the most interesting (excluding Dumbledore's of course!). When Professor Lockhart had occupied it, it had been filled with Wizarding pictures of the very vain, self-centred deceiver, but even then, it had seemed fascinating. Professor Snape's office was unfortunately the one Harry knew best. It was located in the dungeons of the castle, and was filled with jars of unmentionable entities.

The DatDA office could be reached by climbing the Victorian Library style spiral staircase at the front, right hand corner of the classroom. The stairs were a kind of rusty gold colour, and they led to a small oak door at the top. Inside the round office, if Harry's memory served him well, was a beautiful window, overlooking the Quidditch pitch. When Lockhart had held the room, there were too many pictures waving at Harry for him to notice, Lupin had kept the drapes closed due to his lack of pleasure for the sight of a full moon, and Professor Moody, last years teacher, had boarded the window up completely, insisting that people could spy on him through it. Harry wondered how this new Professor would decorate the office. She wasn't really like any teacher he had met before, she was only, what? Ten years older than her students, if that!

"I'm glad you're still here actually, I needed to have a word with you," Professor Ashling said, an amused glint in her eye.

Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at here suspiciously.

"How's your ankle?" she asked Charlie, going completely off topic, or so it seemed.

"Much better, I'll be back to full strength by this evening," Charlie said, the same glint now forming in the corner of his eye.

Harry's original thought as to what Charlie meant by that comment was not something he was going to admit to anyone, even though he was pretty sure by the looks on their faces that they had thought the same thing!

"Are you three free this evening?" Professor Ashling asked.

"Umm...what for?" Harry asked cautiously.

"Training" the Professor replied casually, obviously not wanting to give too much away.

"Training for what?" Hermione said, equally as cautious as Harry.

"Ah, now that you'll just have to wait and see. Seven 'o' clock this evening okay for you?"

Harry exchanged an intrigued glance with Ron and Hermione.

"Okay then. In here?" Harry asked.

"For starters" Charlie replied, helping to build up the mysticism. "Won't we need four of them Kari?" he added.

"Yes, I suppose we will. Why don't you bring Ginny along too, no doubt she wants to see Charlie anyway."

"Ginny?" Charlie said doubtfully, "Are you sure, I mean, this is going to be kind of dangerous, its not really her thing."

"Why not?" Professor Ashling replied defiantly.

"Because...she's...you know, not really into all this...she's a..." Charlie stammered.

"Because she's a girl!"

"Well, yeah!"

"So are Hermione and I, but you don't have a problem with us."

"But, Ginny..."

"Will love it. Have faith in your sister Charlie, there's more to her than you give her credit for."

"Alright, alright!!"

"Good, that's settled then. See you back here at seven," Professor Ashling said to Harry, Ron and Hermione.

Harry and Ron turned to go, but Hermione stayed where she was for a moment longer.

"Umm, Professor?" she asked tentatively.

"Oh, Kari, please. Being called 'Professor' during lessons is bad enough, it makes me feel old! It was only a few years ago that I was a student here!"

Hermione grinned, "Okay, Kari. Could you possibly lend me that book you were talking about earlier, I want to do some background reading before next lesson."

Harry rolled his eyes. Typical Hermione behaviour.

"Sure, here you go," Kari said handing over the purple, leather-bound copy of 'Demon Dragons?'

With that the trio turned at walked out of the classroom.

"You just didn't like the fact that I knew more about Dragons than you did in class today," Ron said to Hermione as they walked down the corridor towards the Gryffindor Common rooms.