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Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc
Chapter One : Lapis Lazuli
Lapis lazuli is an ancient stone said to represent friendship and truth. Blue lapis lazuli gems are believed to help bring about harmony in relationships. It is a stone of wisdom and awareness.

Unknown Location, Earthland; Year X777

"Lapis Lazuli, the stone of Universal Truth." His mother's voice said above him, and the five year old seated on her lap turned away from the crystal he was turning over in his hands to peer at her face.

"Universal Truth?" The child's voice was timid and soft, and the woman, who's skin was the colour of soil and hair a mossy green, smiled lovingly, her crystalline eyes kind. "What's that?"

She ran a hand through the dark curls that had finally begun to grow back, gently tracing the horrific scar that had stolen one of his beautiful eyes and damaged one side of his delicate face. "There are many, my sweet jewel. Every being has one or two of them, perhaps even more if they find them."

The boy blinked up at his mother, "What is mine, Mamma?"

A kiss was pressed to his forehead, and warm arms hugged him closer, "That you are loved, little gem. And one day, you will find more Truths to add to that one."

Deep within East Forest, Fiore, Earthland; Year X786

"Hakuryū no Hōkō!"

"Eiryū no Hōkō!"

Two opposing vortices of white and black magics clashed, sending a shock wave of power across their training field and kicking up dust and grit and blowing the green ribbon from his black hair. Lapis grinned behind his crystal shield, eye flashing as he watched his two friends spar, one hand running across Lector's burgundy ear the other cradling Frosch closer to his chest as the two Exceeds awed over the power in their Dragon Slayers' roars.

"Go Sting-kun!"

"Fro is cheering for Rogue!"

Sting staggered back from the force of his attack, grinning wide enough that Lapis could see the sharpness of his canines even at the distance that he sat at, and even the ever-composed Rogue was smirking proudly at the strength of their magic, his ratty black cloak fluttering around his ancles.

"That was the strongest yet!" The blond laughed brightly, throwing his arms into the air victoriously, then turned to beam at where Lapis sat with the two Exceeds. "Didja see that?"

The smaller dark-haired boy laughed quietly, brushing the black curls of his untamable hair back over his shoulder, allowing his green crystalline shield to crumble as he stood, patting down his old pants (they'd have to get new clothes soon, Lapis noted absently, all three of them were starting to look threadbare and bedraggled). "That was great!" Lapis smiled shyly, "You're both really strong!"

Sting grinned, shooting the smallest of the three mages a thumbs up just as Rogue crossed his arms proudly over his chest.

Lapis had met Sting Eucliffe when they were both ten years old, his mother had faded before his eyes less than year beforehand, and Lapis, frightened and alone, and finally having worked up the courage to make his way down the mountain he and his mother had called home, had stumbled upon the taller blond boy and his kitten companion in the tiny village of Tsubaki.

Nestled at the foot of the large mountain range, Tsubaki Village was remote and all-but devoid of mages, and Sting had been living with an elderly couple that had taken him in for the time he had been in the village; it was small and quiet, and the first human settlement Lapis had seen since waking up in his mother's arms for the first time, down an eye and memories of burning and drunken laughter lingering within every shadow. Everyone in the small village knew each other, and Lapis, with his handmade animal skin and furs clothing, unkempt hair, frightening burn scars hidden behind shaggy bangs and long sleeves despite the summer weather, and a rucksack filled crystals and his few belongings, stood out amongst the woolen clothed townspeople immediately. It had actually been Lector he had met first, seven days into his hesitant trips into the village a gathering of children had caught his attention, and in Lapis' experience the formation they had gathered in was never a good sign. He had stood, rooted in his spot as the children jeered and taunted, dark memories threatening to drown him, until-

"Shut up!" A small voice had yelled, "Shut UP! I'm not lying! I'M NOT LYING!"

And Lapis stepped forwards, the faint scuffing of his boots barely audible over the children's laughter. "Stop it." He had said softly, startling the group of cruel children, and the group of five spun around clumsily to face him. Lapis, much smaller than average, had flinched back as the group of boys towered above him, and he got his first look at the one they had been tormenting.

A cat? Lapis could still remember his stunned shock as he stared down at the tiny bipedal burgundy and cream kitten in a small navy vest.

"Oy! Who're ya!" The tallest boy demanded rudely, and Lapis blinked his attention from the strange cat and back to the other boys looming over him.

"H-hey, Luiz, I think that's the kid from the mountains!" One of the other boys had muttered, and the group sneered.

"The mountain savage!" Another laughed mockingly, and the leader smirked cruely.

"One freak standing up for another!"

The first that connected with his cheek was not a sloppy one, but one that had a lot of experience behind it - the boy must have had a lot of experience beating on others, and (for a moment, the fist was larger, meatier, and Sir was hollering at him) the force sent Lapis' smaller frame stumbling to the ground, landing him harshly on his butt as his ankle rolled.

The laughter went silent, and Lapis, the left side of his face exposed, cringed.

The children screamed in horror and fled, scattering like rabbits.

They had seen the scarring.

The pocketed pink scarring that marred his face stretched from temple to cheek, tapering off at his jaw before reappearing down to his neck, under his collar and hidden the burns moved across his shoulder and left arm and ended at his hip. Where his left eye should have been was a twisted mass of a scar that sealed the useless socket shut. His mother had managed to heal all but the most damaged areas when she had found him in the mountains, but it was still horrifying to look at.

Lapis had flinched back, allowing dark curls to tumble into his face to once again shield the world from his scars, and a single hesitant green eye shifted around the now-abandoned alley to land on the only other figure in the area.

It had been Lector, the tiny kitten staring at him with slight fear, but refusing to move away, and it had been in that moment that Sting, wearing brown pants and a baggy white tunic, came skidding around the corner. Lapis had staggered to his feet, turned, and ran, unwilling to meet the eye of the other boy.

But Sting had been stubborn, he and Lector had followed Lapis back into the forest to the small cave that the tiny wild child had been calling home for the last week, and refused to leave. Just like that, Lapis had made his very first friends (or more accurately, Sting and Lector had wormed their way into his life until Lapis couldn't imagine life without them).

For a year, Lapis had travelled with Sting and his Exceed partner, training with the young Dragon Slayer and repairing or making new clothes when they needed them. It had been in that year that Sting had returned to their camp one night with Rogue and Frosch following behind him, and a party of three became a group of five.

"Let's go again!"

Lapis shook himself from his memories, eye focusing on where Sting had turned once more to face his fellow Dragon Slayer, blue eyes aglow with determination.

"If we're going to be the strongest, we need to keep training!"

Lapis chuckled as Rogue let out a long-suffering, but fond, sigh and shifted back into a fighting stance.

He missed his mother, but he wouldn't trade his new life for anything.

Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc

Chapter Two : Tourmaline

Tourmaline is said to strengthen both body and spirit. It is believed to attract inspiration, aid concentration, encourage balance and promote understanding. It is also thought to calm nerves, sooth grief, promote balance and build self-confidence.

Surrey, England, Earth; 31 October 1984

He was choking on the smoke, pained screams muffled by ash and the crackling of the flames. Uncle was laughing at his pain, he was always laughing, and the boy was screaming as the blazing embers danced across his tiny body.

"Burn the witch!" His uncle had laughed drunkenly as he had poured gasoline on the boy's half-conscious and beaten frame. It hadn't been the only time in the child's life that he had been beaten, but he had never imagined that his uncle would have dragged him into the woods to burn him.

The child sobbed, gasping as his breath was stolen from his lungs, tears boiling and evaporating as they rolled down his gaunt cheeks, elevating the amount of pain he was in. The flames had stolen the feeling from his arm, and was steadily inching it's way up his neck.

(Help me!)

(Someone help me!)

His eye was burning, and he was choking.

His uncle was laughing.

He couldn't breath, and he could no longer scream.

His forehead felt like it was splitting open and a high pitched screech rent the air as the child slowly lost connection to the world around him.

(I don't want to die...)

Deep within East Forest, Fiore, Earthland; Year X786

"-it's Sting, you're safe. Lapis, wake up."

Lapis woke with a gasp and a flinch, cheeks wet and stinging in pain as a green eye shot open, meeting a pair of worried blue eyes. A quick glance showed that Rogue and the Exceeds were gone, probably having left the tent when their sensitive ears picked up his distress, leaving only him and Sting in their tent. "...Sting?"

Sting smiled comfortingly, running a gentle hand through Lapis' wild hair and the dark-haired boy felt himself relaxing into his friend's touch. "You were having a nightmare again." The White Dragon Slayer said soothingly, well-practiced in handling Lapis' nightmares and terrors. The taller boy frowned, "Are you sure you don't want me to know what it's about?"

Lapis hesitated, leaning into Sting's side and resting his forehead against his shoulder. He wanted to tell Sting, he truly did, but Sting was so strong; would the blond think him weak? Ten years, and Lapis still couldn't look at fire without flinching, he startled at loud noises and cowered away from the smell of alcohol, and his uncle's laughter and cries of 'Burn the witch!' still haunted every step he took. Hands shaking, the smaller boy curled his fingers into Sting's old shirt and pressed his forehead into the dip of where the blond's neck met his shoulder. He ignored the pain from his burns, and licked his lips nervously.

"I-I can't..."

He was a coward.

Sting hummed, tilting his head to bury his nose in Lapis' wild curls, curling his arms around the smaller boy's back. "Well, I'm here if you ever wanna tell me."

Lapis nodded, sucking in a shaking breath in an attempt to calm his racing heart as he curled closer into the taller teen's side. "I don't like fire." He admitted quietly. "Or alcohol."

Sting tightened his grip, "The scars?" He prodded gently, tracing one of said scars that littered his shoulder, and Lapis nodded silently but couldn't bring himself to elaborate further. They sat in silence for a few moments longer to allow the crystal mage to collect himself, and when Lapis started pulling away, Sting let go, letting his hands linger on the other fourteen year old's shoulders for a heartbeat before dropping them and gave the other mage a grin. "Rogue took Lector and Frosch fishing, how about we go looking for those leaves that you like?"

Lapis frowned playfully, brushing his hair back over his face as he stood. "They're called herbs, Sting. They add more flavour."

Sting pouted, "But they're leaves, Lala!"

The dark-haired boy blushed, "Lapis. My name is Lapis." He stressed, and the blond grinned mischievously, looping an arm through Lapis' and dragging the smaller boy out of the tent the group of five shared, one that Lapis and Sting had purchased before leaving Tsubaki Village, and the one that Lapis had had to repair multiple times.

"But it's cute!" Sting pointed out, and Lapis' blush deepened.

"You're just saying that because I can't mangle your name into some stupid nickname, Eucliffe!"

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 30 October 1994

Hand clenching a simple slip of parchment and hidden by the shadows, Albus Dumbledore slipped silently into the Great Hall. When Harry Potter had vanished from his aunt's home ten years before, the Headmaster hadn't been in his office, instead being at the Ministry; confident that the monitoring charms placed on his various knickknacks wouldn't fail him in the time he needed to meet with the Minister of Magic. He had returned late into the night, to find his charms had shattered, taking the monitoring instruments with them, and the aging wizard had panicked.

Something had happened to his Chosen One.

Oh, he had known the Prophesied Child would not have an easy life being placed with Petunia and her husband, but it was a required evil for the greater good. Albus knew Tom wasn't gone, and he knew the Potter boy was the only one who would be able to stop him, at the cost of his own life. For the sake of the world, Albus had to ensure that the boy would be willing to sacrifice himself for the good of others, and that he would trust the Headmaster's words above all else.

When he had arrived at Number Four, every ward and charm he had erected had crumbled, Vernon Dursley was dead in what was deemed by muggle investigators a drunken accident and an out of control bonfire, and Harry Potter was nowhere to be seen or detected. His name was still in the Book of Names, signaling the boy was alive, but his location was blank, and when visiting the goblins to try to use the old Potter Vaults and Grimiore to find the child Albus was denied access as he was no longer classified as the orphan's magical guardian.

Harry Potter was nowhere to be found, Fawkes couldn't locate him, and the goblins were refusing to speak to him.

Albus had spent years searching and lying through his teeth on the subject of the Boy-Who-Lived's location; as far as anyone knew, Harry Potter was being trained in secret and Albus could not disclose the boy's whereabouts for the sake of his safety. In his actions he had lost the backing of both Black, who had been declared innocent in the pandemonium that had followed the announcement that the Potter heir hadn't come to Hogwarts, and Lupin, who had been furious that Albus had made such a decision for his friends' child without telling anyone until it was too late. The only one who knew the full truth, aside from Albus, was Severus, and the Headmaster knew that his Potions Master would never share it; he owed Albus a Life Debt.

The Chosen One had been missing for ten years, and Albus finally had the chance to bring him back.

The Goblet of Fire.

In his hand was his opportunity to bring the child back to him; written on the parchment in crimson blood that Albus had collected from the Potter survivor as an infant, was 'Harry James Potter'; spelled to ensure that it would be chosen and thus summoning Harry to Hogwarts, it was Albus' final chance to bring the boy back.

The name fluttered into the Goblet, and the flames flared golden.

Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc

Chapter Three : Tiger's Eye

Golden brown tiger's eye is said to help convert anxiety and fear into practical logic and action. It is also believed to promote balance and strength in difficult times, and to relieve doubt.

Unknown Location, Earthland; Year X779

"Shōjin no Dogō!"

Bolormaa watched proudly as the storm of black crystal shards burst from her son's jaws, impacting the tree she had deemed the target and instantly covering the bark in a crystalline black sheet of shimmering Crystal Magic. It was weak, but she knew he would grow stronger with time and positive encouragement. "Very well done, Lapis-dear." The goddess congratulated, earning a shy smile from the tiny child. The six year old's hair was steadily growing back, and the scarred child had begun styling his hair to cover the warped scars covering one half of his face.

"Thank you, Mamma." The little boy blushed, a single malachite eye shifting timidly away from her.

Bolormaa smiled kindly, "Would you show me how far you've progressed with your armour?" His magic, while powerful, definitely seemed to lean more towards defensive measures and spells.

Little Lapis grinned, eye shining in excitement at the chance to practice his favourite spell. "Shōjin no Yoroi!" Black crystals formed along his thin arm, travelling across his small shoulder and up his neck to cradle his jaw, an impressive show for such a tiny six year old child, and with enough practice he would be covering his entire body in no time.

Bolormaa clapped delightfully, and her son smiled as he let the crystal armour fade away. He was such a talented child, and the goddess enjoyed drawing that talent out from under his timid shell.

"I managed even more than last time, Mamma!"

The crystal goddess beamed, scooping the tiny child into her arms and throwing him into the air, catching him easily as he shrieked in glee. "What a talented little gem I've found!"

Lapis giggled, pressing a clumsy kiss to his mother's brown cheek and wrapped his thin arms around her neck to bury his fingers in her mossy hair. "I love you, Mamma."

Bolormaa smiled, kissing his forehead. "Mamma loves you too, my little diamond."

Her son was a precious diamond in the rough.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 31 October 1994

To Albus, the Halloween feast of what should have been Harry Potter's Fourth Year seemed to take much longer than usual, his blue eyes always returning to the blue flames of the Goblet of Fire. He kept an absent ear on the murmuring of his students, none of whom, except perhaps the youngest Weasley boy, we're paying as much attention to the extravagant foods in favor of peering curiously at the Goblet or at Albus himself as he slowly ate his way through his plate.

The Great Hall went silent as Albus stood to smile amiably at the children, golden plates disappearing as he clapped his hands. "It looks like the Goblet is almost ready to make its final decision. I estimate it might require one more minute." Young eyes followed him as he circled the staff table to stand directly in front of the other adults. "Now, when the Champions are chosen, I would ask them to please come to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through those doors there and into the next chamber, where they will receive their first set of instructions."

Letting his wand slip into his hand, Albus blew out the candles in the Hall with a single wave, effectively plunging the gathering into near darkness and allowing the Goblet of Fire to shine. The blue flames grew brighter at the lack of any other light, sparkling and dancing for all eyes to see, and suddenly those blue flames turned crimson, and a tongue of fire shot into the air.

The whole room gasped, and Albus deftly caught the charred slip of parchment that fluttered through the air. Illuminated by flames that had turned azure once more, the Headmaster read the first name for the room to hear.

"The Champion for Durmstrang, will be Viktor Krum."

A flurry of applause and cheering swept the Hall as Viktor Krum rose from his seat at the Slytherin table, and Dumbledore could make out the youngest Weasley boy's shout of; "No surprise there!" raising above the din while the first Champion slouched into the side hall.

"Bravo, Viktor!" Karkaroff boomed, clapping for his Champion. "Knew you had it in you!"

As the cheering and chatting died down, the Goblet turned red once more, allowing for a second parchment to be propelled into the air, lifted by the flames.

"The Champion for Beauxbatons, is Fleur Delacour!"

A beautiful young woman swept to her feet, and Dumbledore could recognize her as the eldest daughter of the French Minister. When she too had vanished into the smaller chamber, silence was faster to fall amongst the students.

Next was the Hogwarts Champion, and Albus' students were on the edge of their seats.

A shower of red sparks preceeded the third tongue of flames, and the old wizard snatched the third piece of parchment from it's tip.

"The Hogwarts Champion," Albus spoke above the excited whispers, blue eyes sweeping the crowd to fall on the young man the Goblet had chosen to represent his school; a good boy, certainly, fair and talented in Transfiguration, and well-liked amongst his peers. "Is Cedric Diggory!"

The Hufflepuff table exploded in cheers, jumping to their feet as their prefect stood. The young man was grinning widely as he made his way past his housemates, ruffling a few heads of hair amongst the Hufflepuff First Years, and indeed it took awhile, even after the boy had disappeared, to be able to speak above the volume of the cheers the Diggory heir had received.

"Excellent!" Albus cried above the voices of the young witches and wizards, and the last of the tumult died down as he did so. "We now have our three Champions." He clapped his hands together, and his eyes slid slowly back to the Goblet, watching as sparks of gold hopped between to blue flames. "I am sure I can count upon all of us not chosen to give our Champions every ounce of support. By cheering for these young wizards, and witch, you will contribute in a very real -"

The Goblet of Fire burned golden, flooding the Hall with a blinding light and a shower of spitting sparks, and Albus was forced to cover his eyes as screams exploded amongst the crowd of students.

Albus Dumbledore had not seen this situation occurring in any of his plans.

The brightness faded, but the screaming didn't; it decreased in volume, but it didn't stop, and the light weight of a piece of parchment settling in his hair made Albus uncover his eyes to reach up to pluck it off the top of his head.

But his gaze didn't move to read it -he already knew what it would say-, instead his gaze was drawn to the source of the continued, hysterical screams. Three teenagers had appeared before him, only two standing, while the third was curled into the smallest ball he could possibly make, two odd cats sprawled next to his side, and screaming at the top of his lungs. Powerful magic lashed out around all three, and the two standing boy's pressed closer to their curled-up companion.

The moment he moved, Albus felt the two boys' sharp eyes snap towards him; one pair, belonging to the messy-haired blond, ice blue, while the other, ebony-haired, was a startling crimson, and both had slit pupils.

There was a long pause where the only noise was the hysterical screaming of the third unknown boy as Albus studied the children, who stared right back with near-feral eyes and furious magic. And then Albus cleared his throat, eyes shifting down to the parchment, which he read in a loud, clear voice.

"Harry Potter."

Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc

Chapter Four : Prehnite

Green prehnite is a gem with a mystical aura. Prehnite is said to be the stone of remembered dreams, meditation and prophecy.

Clover Town, Fiore, Earthland; Year X784

"N-no way...!"

"Sting?" Lapis frowned in confusion as his friend staggered to a stop, and the green eyed mage shared a look with an equally confused Rogue. He shoved the jewels the three had just made through helping a kind old lady with a wolf problem on her farm, and they had been on their way to the closest market for fresh fruits when the only blond in their group had frozen, eyes drawn to something to their left.

Sting shot away from them, scooping a newspaper off of an abandoned bench, and the other two boys followed.

Lapis glanced at Sting worriedly, and said worry grew even more potent as he watched tears begin to well in his blue eyes. "Sting?!"

The blond's hands shook, and Rogue's red eyes shifted to the papers in his fellow Dragon Slayer's white-knuckled fists, where his face immediately paled.

"They- they're gone?!" Sting whispered coarsely, finally tearing tear-filled cornflower blue eyes away from the paper in his hands to meet Lapis' single green one. "How - this is - N-Natsu-san... I don't understand...? How?" His lips wobbled, and the tears finally began to fall.

And that was when Lapis finally got a good look at the paper, at the image of an empty sea next to another of a group of smiling mages; Fairy Tail's most powerful and well-known magic users.

Fairy Tail Mages Annihilated By Dragon - Sacred Island Destroyed

"Gajeel-san?" Rogue murmured in stunned shock, tears of his own gathering in stunned red eyes, and a small part of Lapis was glad Frosch and Lector weren't there to see their Dragon Slayers break down at the loss of their heroes and idols.

"W-why? How?!" Sting's voice shook violently as his shoulders heaved with miserable, muffled sobs. "Natsu-san lost to a dragon? He was stronger than me!"

Lapis moved forward, gently prying the newspaper from Sting's shaking hands and placing it back onto the bench so that he could turn to get her his two larger friends into a tight hug. Rogue went still and quiet, but Lapis could feel one of his hands knot into the fabric of his shirt, while, on the other hand, Sting hiccuped tearfully and buried his damp face in Lapis' shoulder.

The fruit could wait.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 31 October 1994

It had started with Lapis' frantic, terrified screaming.

Sting and Rogue had been seated by the small stream by their camp, effectively skinning the rabbits they had caught earlier in the day while their God Slayer was closer to their tent with Lector and Frosch preparing to make a stew from their day's catch. The two Dragon Slayers were talking, excitedly and cheerfully in Sting's case, and reserved but amused for Rogue, about their day's training.

And then their sensitive ears picked up on their final human companion's screams.

The rabbits had fallen into the water with a splash, and the two Dragon Slayers bolted back towards the camp.

Lapis had been crouched, wild-eyed and horrified, his arms shielding his head, in the center of a ring of golden flames. The Exceeds had been huddled into the terrified God Slayer's side, scared eyes flickering between the pulsing ring of fire that was steadily becoming a dome, and Lapis' curled-up form. Sting had moved immediately, Rogue hot on his heels, bursting through the golden blaze, absently noting that the fire did not burn him, to roll up next to Lapis, Lector, and Frosch.

And in that moment the dome had closed, the flames pulsed one last time, and the sudden, tugging feeling in Sting's navel preceeded the startling explosion of light that overtook the group of five.

It had started with Lapis' screams, and now they found themselves in front of an old man with a stupidly long beard, in a strange stone room filled with other people, all of whom were whispering about the name 'Harry Potter'.

Sting bristled even further as the old man's eyes flicked from Sting, to Rogue, and finally to Lapis, who's screams had tapered off to a traumatized silence, and who Sting could smell the fear wafting off of.

From the looks of it, Sting could blame the old man for his God Slayer's terror. Part of him wanted nothing more than to throw himself at the old bastard and tear out his throat to present to Lapis for the man's actions, an instinct very much that of a dragon, but the other part, the part that was more human than anything else, wanted to curl around the smaller boy and comfort him, and it was the immense difference between the two instincts that was making the blond Dragon Slayer so much more irratable than he would have been.

"Oy! Who the fuck are you, you stupid old fart?!" Sting snapped harshly, baring his teeth furiously at the old man, and he knew Rogue was already prepping himself in case they had to fight their way out of where ever they had been transported to. "Was that stupid fire dome your spell?!"

The old man smiled kindly, in a way that made Sting's spine prickle in unease, spreading his hands in what was probably supposed to be a welcoming manner, but only succeeded in making Sting and Rogue tense, their magic bubbling beneath the surface. "Ah, my apologies, my name is Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts. It would seem you were pulled in alongside Mister Potter in the summoning done by the Goblet of Fire for the Triwizard Tournament."

"We don't know no Mister Potter!" Sting spat, "But I do know that you hurt my friend, you sunnovabitch!" A growl tore itself from the White Dragon Slayer's throat, one that was echoed by his Shadow counterpart as his agitation affected his Pridemate, and even both Lector and Frosch were affected, hissing quietly as they pressed closer to the too-silent Lapis.

The old man - Dumbledore or whatever - looked slightly unsettled by the steadily more animalistic qualities of the aggravated teenagers. "Mayhaps we should move to an adjoining chamber, my boy, to talk more privately? Our matron, Madam Pomfrey, can help your young friend."

Rogue growled in disquiet at the suggestion, but his red eyes shifted to Sting, the more aggressive of the two in that moment, for the decision; their small Pride may not have had an Alpha, but Sting was the one most affected of the two, which meant the choice was his, and as much as Sting did not want to move to another confined space, he also had Lapis' mental state to think of. Sting's head swiveled towards Lapis' still form, and he shifted nervously.

But his mind was made up; his God Slayer came first.

He moved, scooping the smaller boy into his arms, and shot the old man one more displeased snarl as he hugged Lapis to his chest. He saw the flash of displeased recognition in the man's eyes, and knew the old fart had gotten the message and understood the threat.

If he tried anything, Sting would not hesitate to allow his dragon instincts to take over, and the man would not be pleased with the outcome.

Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc

Chapter Five : Citrine

Citrine is said to open the mind to new thoughts and balance impatience and restlessness. Citrine is thought to promote optimism. It also attracts abundance and is known as the "merchant's stone"; it is often placed where business is conducted, not only to acquire wealth, but to maintain it. It is also good for mental focus, endurance and self-esteem.

Surrey, England, Earth; 24 December 1983

He hated the cold.

The Boy shivered violently as he pressed himself further into the hedges of his aunt's garden in an attempt to get out of the snow and frozen rain, while mournful eyes stayed locked on the glowing window that allowed the Boy to see his uncle, aunt, and cousin seated comfortably in front of the fireplace, watching something on the telly while enjoying hot chocolate and cookies; treats that the Boy would never be allowed to eat, but their existence rubbed in his face, if only to watch him squirm hungrily.

He was so cold, and yet his skin felt as if it was burning beneath his thin clothing.

The Boy shivered again, shoving his burning hands beneath his armpits in an attempt to warm them once more, and the three year old tried not to cry; if he cried, he'd only get colder, the Boy knew how this worked. As long as he kept himself warm, and didn't make any noise, his aunt would let him back in the house to lock him away in his cupboard before she went to bed.

He curled into a tighter ball, pressing his nose into the dip between his knees, allowing his breath to warm his legs while also keeping his nose from freezing, and the Boy coughed painfully.

His face was freezing, and yet it was burning.

The Boy hated the feeling of burning, just as much as he hated the cold, and almost as much as he hated his uncle, aunt, and cousin.

He hated it.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 31 October 1994

Sting growled in displeasure as he glared from the gathering of older teenagers, to the adults, and finally to the old man, before shuffling closer to Lapis' side as an old lady with grayed hair and kind blue eyes tutted over the smallest of the Slayer Trio. Rogue, Frosch and Lector clinging to his legs, shifted so that he stood in between the prying eyes of the odd older humans and the near-catatonic Lapis.

Lapis, who these people were calling 'Harry Potter'.

"Now where did you get all of these burns, Mister Potter?" The elderly matron muttered in displeasure, flicking her odd twig and using a hand to brush aside Lapis' bangs to get a look at the left side of his face, where immediately every person in the room, excluding their small group, let their eyes shoot to the scarred skin of Lapis' forehead.

Sting snarled, slapping the woman's hand away from his friend's face to glower at her. Lapis hated it when strangers stared at his burn scars, and if his smaller friend had been completely aware he would have been mortified. It even upset him when Sting, Rogue, or the Exceeds saw the injuries, despite how many times they told him that the scars didn't bother them.

"His name is Lapis - Lapis Lazuli! And he hates it when people touch his face!" Sting growled, refusing to back down in the face of the displeased look 'Madam Pomfrey' shot him, and Rogue pinned the group of odd magicals with a red-eyed glare.

He froze when Lapis suddenly shuddered, green eye blinking as it sharpened once again, and Sting shot to the God Slayer's side, one hand moving to cradle the right side of Lapis' face to draw the smaller Slayer's attention to him.

Lapis blinked again, gaze focusing on Sting's face. "Sting...? What...?" He murmured dazedly, eyes growing distant once more as what had happened began to come back to him, and the small God Slayer began to shake violently. "Fire- There was-" Lapis shivered, and Sting lightly patted his face to catch the other boy's attention once more.

"Hey, hey. None of that, Lala. Look at me." The green gaze slid back to him, and Sting nodded, pleased, as he used his other hand to carefully brush Lapis' long hair back into his face. "That's it, Lapis. Look at me. You trust me, yeah? I'll keep you safe, no one will touch you when I'm here."

Lapis nodded shakily, flinching away from the hands of the matron to huddle against Sting's chest, and Sting growled at the old woman once again.

"Lapis-kun!" Lector cried joyfully, tearing himself away from Rogue, ignoring the startled look the others in the room shot him, to clamber up onto the armchair the God Slayer was seated on and curl up on the boy's lap.

Lapis startled, but relaxed the moment Lector began to purr, and lifted his head from Sting's chest to peer around the small room they had been moved to in confusion. "...Where are we?" He said quietly, and Sting shrugged.

"Something about pigs, I think? And summoning magic."

"Hogwarts." Rogue replied, narrowing his eyes to stare angrily at Dumbledore. "Apparently they have some sort of tournament going on, and we were all caught in a summoning."

One of the teenagers said, shooting confused gray eyes towards the adults. "What's going on?"

"Extraordinary! Harry here has been chosen as the fourth Champion!" A potbellied man with blond hair, wearing eye-searing yellow and black, scurried forward but was forced to stop when Rogue stepped in front of his path to bare his fangs at the man threateningly. Neither Sting, nor Rogue, would let any of these strange people anywhere near their smallest Slayer.

"Absolutely extraordinary! What an entrance from you, Harry!" The potbellied man blustered, smiling at Lapis in a way that made Sting growl at him.

Lapis frowned, glancing at Sting in confusion, "What's going on? Who are all these people?"

"I don't know." Sting grumbled in displeasure, then turned to snarl at the strangers, placing himself protectively in front of the smaller boy. "But they better start talking."

"Ludo," The old man said soothingly, "I have already sent the students off to bed, why don't you take our older Champions out into the Great Hall to explain their first task."

The potbellied man - Ludo - nodded cheerfully and moved to heard the taller teenagers and quite a number of the adults out of the room, leaving only the Slayer Trio and the Exceeds, the matron, Dumbledore, a man with greasy hair who smelled of poisons, an older man with only one eye and missing the tip of his nose, and a stern woman carrying the scent of cat in the room.

Sting shifted, grumbling under his breath. A portion of the strangers were gone, but they were still outnumbered in a small room, and from the almost smug gleam in the old man's eyes, he knew it too (as much as Sting loved Lector and Frosch, they weren't much help when it came down to a fight).

Rogue crossed his arms over his chest, but kept his weight even incase it came down to a fight, and Sting himself curled his fingers into fists as Lapis stood, Lector in his arms, to move to stand beside the two Dragon Slayers.

"Well?" Sting prompted, icy eyes narrowing into a feral glare. "Start talking, old man."

Dumbledore smiled, and Sting stiffened when the man's eyes moved directly to Lapis, "Harry, my boy, how good it is to see you. You've grown since our last encounter, but you still have your mother's eyes." The man seemed to ignore the confused expression on the boy's face and continued to speak as if they had known each other for years. "I finally get to welcome you to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and I trust you've been training hard these last few years?" The old man turned to smile at the other adults in the room, "Minerva, Poppy, my dears, we can handle it from here."

Sting watched as the two women left without much fuss, following whatever the man was saying with an unnatural amount of trust.

They obviously couldn't tell that the old fart smelled heavily of mistruths and manipulations.

The elderly man turned back to Lapis, and the atmosphere in the room steadily became heavier, and Sting stiffened.

He really wanted to remove the man's stupid eyes.

Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc

Chapter Six : Jasper

Jasper quartz is a gemstone associated with relaxation, contentment, compassion, nurturing and consolation. Jasper is said to relieve mental stress and help to achieve balance in life.

Unknown Location, Earthland; Year X777

Bolormaa had been watching the animals of the mountains moving through their life below the lunar eclipse when the sudden gathering of Celestial Energy, something she hadn't sensed for four hundred years, caught her attention.

The animals went silent.

Her head snapped towards the sky just on time to see the sky light up above Fiore, arcs of golden magic shooting through into the air only to split into six distinct comet-like beams that would head off in different directions.

The dragons' plan had begun.

The crystal goddess had shielded her eyes to watch the comets fall, when another pulse of Celestial Energy dragged her attention elsewhere, to where a small vortex of golden magic had begun to form a few meters away from her, and the smell of burnt flesh filled the air.

A faint splash, and a small form fell into the stream.

Bolormaa moved forward to fish whatever it was out of the water, and pulled out a small child.

It was a little boy, naked and covered in ash, and oozing and bloody wounds. The majority of his hair had been burnt away, and a large portion of the poor boy's face had been mangled, there was a strange black sludge staining his brow that stunk of Death Magic that made Bolormaa's skin crawl.

The poor child must have been used as an attempted sacrifice, and from what she could tell from the feeling of the boy's juvenile magic, he had attempted to teleport away from his attacker, only to catch the access magic let off of the Eclipse Gate.

Bolormaa frowned, and with a muttered "Metsujin Ōgi: Chikatsu Saisei" she allowed a sheet of healing crystals to form across the boy's tiny body. Her healing magic wasn't perfect, and the worst the injury, or the larger the amount of damage, the less likely it was that the would would heal completely.

For now, she could only wait, and hope for the best.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 1 November 1994

"So, we're stuck here." Lapis said in dismay, dropping down onto the loaned bed in the rooms that their host had oh so gratuitously allowed them to use. He dropped his face into his hands with a loud groan, but was distracted by Frosch hopping into his lap.

"Fro doesn't like this." The green Exceed said in distress, and Lapis hugged the small cat to his chest.

"I'm sorry, Frosch."

Frosch sniffled and burrowed closer to the God Slayer's chest.

"How did he get your blood?" Rogue muttered, and Sting frowned, a small growl echoing in the back of his throat in remembrance of the slip of paper the old man had held that smelled of ash and Lapis' blood.

Lapis sighed, "I don't know, and it's not a fun thought." He ran a hand across his arm thoughtfully.

Albus Dumbledore, the Headmaster of Hogwarts, a school for magic (and wasn't that a boring thought- a school for magic? There would be no variance, nobody would have original magic), and apparently an 'old friend' of the birth parents that Lapis had never known. He had apparently known him since he was a baby, and had been looking for him since he had gone missing. To Lapis, the man had seemed almost desperate to get onto Lapis' good side, and had somehow collected his blood. The man was too suspicious in Lapis' opinion, and had entered the young teenager into a tournament that could kill him, just to bring him to the school, and if Lapis just left he would loose his magic, and thus his life.

They were stuck.

Sting growled again, bustling to Lapis' side, an almost wild look in his blue eyes, and Lapis shot Rogue a confused look as the blond curled around him protectively. He allowed the odd actions, but it was strange to see the friendly White Dragon Slayer act in such a manner.

"I've never seen Sting-kun act like this." Lector spoke up, and Frosch nodded.

"Fro thinks so too."

Rogue shrugged, "Dragon instincts. They've overtaken his human mind." The Shadow Dragon Slayer offered, "You're part of our Pride, and you're being threatened, and Sting, as the one closest to you, especially since earlier you were in no state to do it yourself, is feeling compelled to protect you. Skiadrum told me about them, but I never knew they'd be strong enough in Sting to affect me." Rogue's lips twitched into a small smirk, red eyes sparkling in rarely seen mischievousness. "Now that we're in private, Sting's allowing himself to dote on you. If he starts presenting you with shiny objects, give me a heads up."

Lapis' brows furrowed, "What?"

What did shiny objects have to do with their current situation?

Rogue only snickered and changed the subject, and Lapis' eye twitched as he was nearly pulled into Sting's lap and was forced to let go of Frosch, allowing the green Exceed to fly back into Rogue's arms.

"What do you make of this?" Rogue asked, sitting down on one of the comfortable looking armchairs, and Lapis let out a sigh.

"I have no idea." The Crystal God Slayer said awkwardly, green eye sliding away from Rogue, to the stone walls. "I'd never even heard the name Harry Potter before today. I..." He bit his lip, "My mother named me Lapis Lazuli after she found me, but before that... Before that, I lived with people who tried to burn me alive." The green eyed boy admitted and shrugged nervously, and Sting, who's nose must have picked up the scent of his discomfort, whined, pulling Lapis closer to his chest.

"That's why...?"

Lapis nodded, and said quietly. "That's why I'm afraid of fire."

Rogue's red eyes hardened, and a small growl vibrated in the back of his throat.

"Gods, don't tell me you're going to go all dragon instincts on me, too." Lapis grumbled, twitching slightly as Sting's blond hair tickled the back of his neck, and Rogue snorted.

"I'd rather not make Sting think I'm challenging him."

"Challenging him?" Lapis echoed in confusion, "Challenge him for what?"

Rogue hummed, "Considering how strongly Sting reacted earlier, I think you'll find out sooner rather than later." He grinned slightly, and Lapis watched him move away from the bed the God Slayer had claimed, towards one on the other side of the room. "Don't expect Sting to move to his own bed tonight, Lector. You can sleep with Frosch and I."

"Oy!" Lapis grumbled, "What do you mean by that?"

Rogue didn't answer, and Lapis found himself being tugged furthur onto the bed to lay down by Sting, who immediately arranged himself so that he was laying halfway on top of the smaller boy. Lapis huffed, and Sting made an odd growling purr in the back of his throat, blinking big blue eyes up at him.

It was adorable, and no matter how annoying the position was, Lapis actually found himself enjoying the warmth of the other teenager, and the constant purring was steadily drawing him into a comfortable sleep.

Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc

Chapter Seven : Peridot

Green peridot is thought to strengthen life, bring about prosperity, growth and increase openness. Peridot is also believed to help one understand relationships, and to alleviate depression, anger, fear, jealousy and anxiety.

Magnolia, Fiore, Earthland; Year X785

The doors to Fairy Tail slid open, catching the attention of the small amount of mages that lingered in its halls, and Lapis looked around nervously at the way their expressions dropped when they caught sight of the three children in the doorway, but their eyes lingered on Lector and Frosch at the feet of their respective Dragon Slayers.

Having heard so much about Fairy Tail from Sting and Rogue, the young God Slayer couldn't help but feel sad in the face of the hopelessness in these mages' eyes, mages who had been known for years as the most lively in the land.

"What are you kids doing here?" A middle aged man with dark blue hair asked, standing from his seat at the only table that was filled with mages, and Lapis shifted shyly on his feet.

Sting stepped forward, staring up at the man with determined blue eyes. "I'm Sting, this is Rogue, Lapis, Lector, and Frosch. We're here to join!"

The man's expression melted into shock, "You... want to join?" He echoed in disbelief, before sighing and shaking his head. "Sorry - Sting, was it? You don't want to join."

"But we do!" Sting cried, "Natsu-san was my hero! And this was his guild! And-and Rogue looked up to Gajeel-san!"

The man flinched at the sound of the name, face crumbling in grief. "Listen, you seem like a good kid," The man said quietly, "But Fairy Tail can't take any new members. We get next to no jobs, our guild hall is about to be shut down, we really can't take in any members."

Sting stared up at the man in horror, and the man winced at the expression on the blond's face; he was taking no enjoyment from crushing the dreams of a group of children, and Lapis could see that admitting to the state of their guild was painful to him.

"But..." Tears were welling into Sting's eyes, "But, I thought..."

"I'm sorry," The man said gently, "I'm you're really looking for a guild to join, I'd suggest Lamia Scale. They'll take you in."

"But I don't want Lamia Scale!" Sting shouted, stomping his foot stubbornly. "I'm wanted to join Fairy Tail!" And he spun on his heel, and bolted from the guild hall.

"Sting-kun!" Lector called after him in dismay, and set off after the blond Dragon Slayer, Rogue and Frosch trailing behind him.

Lapis lingered, staring up at the small group of Fairy Tail mages, at their dark expressions and sad eyes. If Sting and Rogue were so upset over the loss of mages they didn't know, but looked up to, he couldn't even imagine what the guild mates of the missing wizards felt.

(He felt guilty, it was only on his suggestion, made in an attempt to cheer the two Dragon Slayers up, that Sting had decided to join Fairy Tail.)

"I'm sorry for your loss." He said quietly, eyes moving back to the man who must have been their new guild master, and he hesitated, before pressing his palms together and summoning magic to his palms, picturing the Fairy Tail symbol in his minds eye, and when he opened his hands, their symbol was cupped in his palms.

The green crystal of his Crystal Make magic shimmered in the light of the guild hall, and the blue-haired man looked like he would collapse onto his knees at a moments notice.

Lapis gently pressed the magical crystal into his hands, and smiled shyly at the man, before bowing respectfully and scurrying out of the Fairy Tail guild hall after his friends.

(Back in the too-empty guild, Macao collapsed onto his knees, the small crystal sculpture clutched to his chest, and cried for those they lost.)

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 1 November 1994

Sting woke the next afternoon fuzzy-headed and bleary-eyed, curled protectively around Lapis' sleeping frame. The night before was a foggy memory of protective anger and righteous fury in the face of Lapis' tears, followed by an even foggier memory of letting his dragon instincts take control after they had finally been shown to a room they could use in the time that they were trapped in the stupid pig school.

The blond Dragon Slayer sat up with a grunt, rubbing sleepily at an eye as he studied the room they had been given. It was quite large, with gray stone walls, and floors covered in a plush brown carpet, one wall had large windows with ledges large enough to sit on. There were three large beds lining the walls, and a nice fireplace surrounded by an armchair and a couch, and from the looks of it they also had their own bathroom.

Lapis muttered something in his sleep and curled into a tighter ball.

"You're awake, finally." Rogue said in amusement, studying him from the armchair with a faint smirk on his face. "The two of you slept through breakfast and lunch. I got some food delivered to the room when you started moving around."

Sting slid off the large bed and padded over to join Rogue and the Exceeds in front of the fireplace, nose twitching at the scent of whatever food it was that they were eating. "Lapis needs the sleep. What is that?"

"It's called shepard's pie," Rogue said, "Beef, corn, peas, carrots, and potatoes in one dish. With something called gravy. It's pretty good."

Lector nodded around his mouthful of the strange food, and Frosch grinned, both cats had made themselves comfortable on the wooden table with their lunch.

"Fro thinks so too!"

Sting moved forward, sniffing at the rich-smelling food in the dish. "Smells good." He admitted, "Doesn't smell suspicious or poisoned."

"It's not." Rogue agreed, moving forward to serve the blond a plate. "Already checked."

Sting absently noted how shiny the plates and forks were as he lifted his first mouthful -they must've been made from gold- and at his first bite, Sting blinked in shock then dug in with gusto; he had never tasted anything like it before!

The smell must have caused Lapis to stir, because the dark-haired boy sat up, rubbing drool from his cheek as he did so, and peered at the other four in the room in confusion, brow furrowing. "Is that... shepard's pie?"

Sting blinked, grinning as Lapis shuffled over to join them, dropping heavily onto the couch next to the blond, who immediately moved to serve him his own food. "You have it before?" He asked, handing the golden plate loaded with shepard's pie to the other boy.

Lapis shook his head, absently fiddling with the golden fork in his hands, "No. I helped my aunt make some... but I've never had any." His eyebrows furrowed once again as he held the fork closer to his eye. "This is pure gold. Shiny, too..," A green eye flickered from Sting and towards Rogue. "Does this count?"

Rogue snorted, the Exceeds giggled, and Sting blinked in befuddlement.

"Count for what?" The blond asked, confused.

"I have no idea." Lapis replied blankly.

"Nothing." Rogue interrupted quickly.

Too quickly.

Sting's eyes narrowed suspiciously, "What did you do?"

"Nothing."

"Bullshit." The blond shot back, and Rogue smirked but said nothing further.

The jerk.

Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc

Chapter Eight : Zircon

Since the Middle Ages, zircon has been believed to encourage spiritual growth and the promotion of wisdom. It is said that those who wear zircon will find beauty and peace.

London, England, Earth: September 1990

When Harry Potter failed to appear for his first year at Hogwarts, the English Ministry of Magic had a minor panic attack. Employees began digging into everything they knew about the boy hero, looking through documents and searching for names.

Where could the boy be?

Dumbledore had claimed to have placed the Potter heir in a safe place, and that they could look forward to seeing the child come his First Year, yet the Boy-Who-Lived never showed his face.

It took a full three days before the Headmaster informed them of Harry Potter's secret training, and how the child had decided to stay in hiding until he was older, so that he could train himself and travel the world with his mentors before taking up his position in the public eye. This soothed the rattled public, but it didn't stop the inquiry it had caused; Amelia Bones, the new Head of DMLE, had caught onto a scandal that could ruin the Ministry of Magic, a gross miscarriage of justice, and she wouldn't let anything distract her from it.

Sirius Black had never received a trial; his criminal file was a single grouping of paper with choppy notes about the alleged crimes and witness statements, and stamped in red next to a picture of the man was simply 'Azkaban, Awaiting Trial'.

The Boy-Who-Lived Returns!

The Fourth Triwizard Champion, Harry Potter.

Halloween night's events have been eagerly awaited for the citizens of the Wizarding World, for for the first time in many decades the Goblet of Fire would go about choosing it's Champions for the world-renowned Triwizard Tournament. Three schools - Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang - would be competing, and the night was going as expected as three Champions for each institute; for Hogwarts, Cedric Diggory (17, Hufflepuff) was chosen, for Beauxbatons, Fleur Delacour (17) was the lucky witch selected, and finally Durmstrang's Champion was declared as professional Quidditch star Viktor Krum (17).

But, shocking all those present, the Goblet had seemed to make one more choice, declaring Harry Potter, our young national hero, as it's Fourth Champion. Up until now, young Mister Potter (14), was enjoying his youth travelling the world with his specially selected tutors, and had been promising to return to his homeland to take up his responsibilities to the people. He wasn't available to comment when reporters flocked to Hogwarts hoping to get a look at our youngest Champion, but Headmaster Albus Dumbledore (112) was quick to assure us all.

"It's been a busy few day for Harry, and it is taking him a little time to readjust to British weather." said Dumbledore, "He doesn't wish to make a spectacle of his entrance into the Triwizard Tournament, and has no desire to take attention away from the other competitors."

Well witches and wizards, it is our duty to support these young competitors in the days to come. We wish our four Champions the best of luck, and look forward to their Tasks.

Andy Smudgley, Reporter for The Daily Prophet

For more on the Triwizard Tournament, page 07

For more on the adventures of Harry Potter, page 10

For more on the Triwizard Champions, page 12

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 3 November 1994

His hands slammed violently onto Dumbledore's desk, and Sirius Black narrowed his gray eyes into a furious glare aimed at the silver-haired Headmaster, who didn't even have the decency to look sheepish. "So, when did you plan to tell me that my godson has been entered into a farce of a Tournament, against people at least three years his senior, in which he could die a horrible death?" The Lord Black snarled, "Anything I'm missing, Moony?"

Remus didn't seem much calmer compared to his lover, his pale green eyes tinted amber in his anger as he turned sharp eyes to the man he had once admired. "How about the fact that we had to learn about this from the Daily Prophet?" The werewolf's voice was deceptively nonchalant, but his eyes burned even brighter in his quiet fury.

Dumbledore smiled, blue eyes twinkling as he spoke, "Did Harry not contact you? I left the choice to him."

Remus frowned; the man wasn't necessarily lying, but there was something about his words that made his inner wolf bristle. Dumbledore was hiding something, a secret that compelled him to hint that Harry had no wish to see them or even talk to them. The werewolf shifted, catching Sirius' attention, and when gray met amber-green, Remus shook his head.

"So, you wanna try that again, Headmaster?" Sirius drawled, "Maybe with a bit more truth to your statement?"

Dumbledore merely smiled, as if he were amusing a young child, and the two younger wizards scowled.

Talking to Dumbledore was getting them nowhere.

Frowning, Sirius stood, with Remus a second behind. "Well, thanks for your time, Headmaster." The Lord Black said sarcastically, "Let's do this again sometime." He spun on his heel, robe flaring behind him as he strode out of the office, Remus two steps behind him.

The moment the gargoyles slid into place, Sirius turned to his lover and said, "Time to find Minnie."

'Operation: Find Minnie' was easy enough; Minerva McGonagall was nothing if not predictable, and the Marauders had spent enough of their youth avoiding her to know where she would be and when. The older witch didn't seem too surprised to see them outside her class as students in yellow, and blue poured out, muttering at the sight of the two wizards, and she ushered them in as if they were still children taking her class. The three former Gryffindor had grown a lot closer then they had ever been in the past after what should have been Harry's First Year, they had grown suspicious too; Minerva had noticed many blank spots in her memory that she never would have noticed if Sirius and Remus had not been so frantic to find their godson, and the three had been operating their own searches away from Dumbledore's gaze.

They had never found anything, Harry Potter had simply vanished from the face of the earth; none could tell them where Dumbledore had taken him; they knew Hagrid knew something, but the poor half-giant was under Oath not to say anything, and his loyalty to the Headmaster wouldn't waver even without it.

"- the poor boy was near comatose in fear," Minerva was telling them as she led them through the halls towards the guest wing. "It was only his two friends that managed to get him to calm down enough to be talked to. Not that I know what Dumbledore said to him." She added bitterly, coming to a stop in front of a portrait of a young boy pushing himself on a swing.

Remus winced sympathetically; to stop the Headmaster of getting too suspicious of her, Minerva was forced to act as if she trusted the older man completely.

"Hello, Thaddeus," Professor McGonagall said gently, and the boy on the portrait smiled widely.

"Good morn, Professor. What can I do for you?"

The cat animagus smiled politely, "Would you fetch those in the chambers beyond you? I have some people here who wish to meet them."

The boy, Thaddeus, nodded, leaping gracefully from his perch and out of the frame.

A few moments later, the portrait swung open and a young teenager peered out at them with suspicious crimson eyes. Remus felt Moony flinch back into the recesses of his mind when the boy met his eyes, and the werewolf's instincts screamed at him to flee from a greater predator.

Such a thing had never happened before.

Reptilian red eyes narrowed further. "What do you want?"

Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc

Chapter Nine : Amethyst

Amethyst calms the emotions, encourages clarity of thought, and assists in attaining wisdom. Amethyst is a stone of the mind which brings calmness and clarity. Amethyst is said to attune its wearer with intuition, feelings and values. It has long been regarded as an aid to sobriety and is useful for combating alcohol, food and other addictions. It is also thought to ease obsessive-compulsive behavior.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 3 November 1994

His beautiful godson was horrifically scarred.

It took all of Sirius', admittedly lacking, self-control to not throw himself across the table to wrap the tiny dark haired boy across from him in the tightest hug possible, and whisk him away from Hogwarts and the public's grasping hands to secret him away some place warm and as far away from Dumbledore as possible.

Merlin, when James had first put Harry in his arms, Sirius had expected the wild-haired baby to grow into the perfect image of Prongs, with a mischievous mind and his mother's kind heart. Instead, he was looking at a boy who favoured Lily's softer face and button nose, with James' raven hair tamed with length, and a twisted mass of scarring on on half of his face that he could catch sight of between the curtain of black waves that Harry was using to hide the scars away.

"So? Who the hell're you?"

Sirius' eyes flicked towards the golden haired boy who had immediately planted himself in front of Sirius' godson when the red eyed stranger had let them into the room; the boy was tall and fit, with a scar slashing through his brow, and slit-pupiled blue eyes studied the three adults coldly. The final kid, with serpentine red eyes, a dusky complexion, and black hair falling across his face, had melted into the shadows, but Sirius could still fell his calculating gaze drilling into his spine.

He couldn't quite place their strange accents, but it seems almost Asian crossed with an near-American drawl.

The Black's eyes were drawn back to the green eyed boy across from him, and he licked his lips nervously. "Do you remember me, Harry?"

The green eye stared back blankly, before darting to the blond boy next to him, who was bristling like an angry cat.

"I'm not even sure who 'Harry' is." Harry admitted quietly, shoulders hunching in discomfort. "When my mother saved me, she gave me the name Lapis Lazuli. Before that..." He let out a slow breath, then shrugged helplessly.

Sirius' heart broke, "I'm your godfather, my name is Sirius." Gray eyes were searching, looking at his godson's face for any sign of recognition. "Padfoot?"

All he saw was honest confusion.

"I'm - I'm sorry," Harry said shyly, fiddling with his strange leather and fur clothing, "What's a godfather?"

Sirius felt as if he had been suckerpunched, his breath leaving him in a pained gasp, and he felt Remus' warm hand press down on his shoulder, anchoring the both of them, and he heard Minerva hiss in shock. "Your parents chose me - I was supposed to raise you if anything happened to them."

The blond boy growled, a noise echoed by his red eyed companion in the shadows, and Harry's brows furrowed.

It was the blond who spoke, words gutteral and snarled, "So why didn't you?"

Sirius flinched, and Remus twitched.

Harry frowned slight, "Sting," He admonished softly, and the blond - Sting - scoffed, but his eyes softened when they met the smaller teen's gaze.

"You were wondering the same thing, Lapis, don't even deny it."

Harry sighed, gently gripping Sting's wrist to tug him down onto the couch beside him, where he immediately pressed a hand to his chest, as if to keep the angry boy still, and cast his eyes back to the three adults in the room.

"I wanted to," Sirius blurted out, "Merlin's balls, I wanted to - you were one of the things keeping me sane when I - after -"

"Padfoot," Remus interrupted, voice soothing, "Breathe first."

Sirius forced himself to relax; Remus was right, he needed to breathe, to slow down and think. Sirius had always been slightly unhinged, and he had been forced to face that fact, especially after Azkaban, which had furthur unbalanced his already frayed sanity.

It was a fact he would have to live with.

He let out a slow breath, gray eyes moving to meet a single, searching eye the colour of emeralds, and he told his godson the truth. "I should have, and I'm sorry." Sirius admitted, "When I dug you out of the rubble, I should have taken you to Saint Mungos immediately, but I hesitated. The man who betrayed them, he was still on the loose, and as long as he was out there, you would never truly be safe." He let out a humourless chuckle, "It didn't help much that I wanted him dead." Sirius sighed, "Then Hagrid was there, saying that you needed to be taken to Dumbledore. I argued, at first, I was your godfather, you should have stayed with me. But in the end, I trusted the wrong person - I thought Dumbledore would keep you safe until I could catch Pettigrew. I told myself it wouldn't take too long, Wormtail had never been very bright, and I could easily hunt him down by smell - and I was right. I cornered him in London, but he outsmarted me - he started shouting for everyone to hear that I had betrayed Lily and James to Voldemort, I was too stunned to do anything else as he cut off his finger and blew up the street." Gray eyes flashed bitterly, his lips twisting grimly. "I blacked out, woke up surrounded by dead muggles and a destroyed street, Pettigrew was nowhere in sight. I lost it - it was on my suggestion that they made Wormtail their Secret Keeper; James was my brother in everything but blood, and it was openly known, I would have been their first choice. I had thought myself so smart, nobody would have suspected Peter, but he had already betrayed us. That's when the Aurors arrived, I wasn't really fully conscious at the time, but I've been told I was laughing and ranting it was my fault." He shrugged, "Got Stunned, and woke up in Azkaban where I would stay for the next ten years. You weren't even two yet."

Harry blinked, expression befuddled as Sirius finished his part of the story, and a single green eye switched between his godfather and the blond at his side.

"I'm assuming the other two have some role in this story."

Sirius couldn't quite stop his startled jump as the final boy melted back out of the shadows to brush past the three adults, red eyes calculating, and his long cloak almost making it look like the teenager was gliding.

(A small part of Sirius started wondering if Snivillous had had a child sometime in the past and abandoned it in the wild.)

Minerva sighed, "My part comes next," Sirus glanced at his former Professor; her pale green eyes stern, but very sad as she watched James and Lily's son. "I overheard Albus talking to Hagrid, about taking you to Lily's sister. Your parents were two of my favourite Lions when they were in school, and I wanted to see just what kind of home the Headmaster was placing you in. I spent the day watching that family, and I was frankly disgusted by what I found." Her lips twisted in disgusted contempt, "They prided themselves on being normal, without even realizing that their... behavior made them stand out. The husband was a fat oaf, and the son was well on his way to being a spoiled, brutish thug. Petunia... I could not see an ounce of resemblance between the Evans sisters. I was worried that you would become just as bad as your cousin was shaping up to be, and Albus played on those fears when I argued with your placement. He assured me that the safest place for you was with your closest living blood relatives, that in growing up away from the Wizarding World, you would grow without your publicity and popularity affecting your childhood." Harry's eye had narrowed thoughtfully, and Minerva laughed bitterly. "I was wrong."

Sirius watched as Harry's head tilted, mulling over the information he had been given, then his gaze slid over to Remus, still standing behind Sirius and eyeing the two strange kids warily.

"And him?" Sting had followed the shorter boy's stare, nodding towards the werewolf.

"I wasn't in Britain at the time, and I wasn't recalled until months after everything happened." Remus admitted, "I was deep undercover, and I wasn't even told what had happened until nearly four months later. By then, Dumbledore had already hidden you away behind Wards that would never let me anywhere near you, and I was so deep in grief and depression that it was easier to just hide away. I sent you letters and presents on your birthday every year, but from your expression, you probably didn't get any." The young Potter shook his head soundlessly, and Remus huffed, hand twitching on Sirius' shoulder. "Nobody even knew you were missing until you should have come to Hogwarts at eleven; Dumbledore was quick to assure the papers that you were happily travelling the world with specially selected mentors, and that you'd prefer to continue doing so for a few more years."

"Another lie." Sirius growled.

Harry sat back against the couch, studying the three adults, one pale hand gripping the blond's, and Sirius could pick out the faint tremors travelling up his godson's arm. His two companions were scowling at them in displeasure, as if telling them they hadn't done enough, and Sirius couldn't argue with that.

They had failed James' son.

"I don't trust you, not yet." Harry admitted quietly, "But... I'd like to get to know you, if... if that's okay with you." Sirius perked up, gray eyes shining, but he couldn't respond before his godson was continuing. "And to do that... I'd really like it if you would call me by my name, the one I've gone by."

Sirius wasn't sure how he felt about that - Harry was the name James and Lily had given their son, the name Sirius had been using for the boy who had become his lifeline for ten long years. But, at the same time, he had been telling himself, ever since his release from Azkaban, that when he found him, he would put his godson first - no more selfish exploits and no more running off.

Mind made up, Sirius offered the boy a smile, "I can do that." He was rewarded with a beaming smile, and a pleased flush from his godson. "My name is Sirius, Sirius Black. I'd really like to get to know you, too."

"I'm Lapis." His godson said, eye shining. "Lapis Lazuli. And... if it's not too much trouble... can you tell me about my mum and dad?"

Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc

Chapter Ten : Onyx

Black onyx is said to repel negativity and protect its wearer from the hostility of others. It is a gem thought to enhance determination and perseverance.

England, United Kingdom, Earth; 1992

It probably shouldn't have been surprising, how easily they came together and fell in love.

Maybe there had always been something there, but after everything that had happened, they needed each other; Sirius was too damaged, and Remus too lonely, they soothed each other's ragged edges. Sirius needed Remus' calming influence while his own loud personality assured Remus that he wasn't alone anymore, that he still had his Pack with him.

It was hard sometimes; there were nights when Sirius couldn't sleep unless he was Padfoot, and there were mornings when Remus would awaken in a cold sweat with the memory of his wolf's mournful howls echoing in his ears.

They argued and they had their spats, but they always came back to each other, because they were all that was left.

Their love was quiet touches, warm hugs, and promises that they remained.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 8 November 1994

If it had just been Lapis trapped in the castle, he would have gladly spent the time locked away in the rooms that they had been given, but he had Sting and Rogue with him, and he would never try to lock the Dragon Slayers up. Dragon Slayers were not meant to be confined, the were wild and fierce, and when not given enough space to spread their wings, they would only grow restless.

It was only for Sting and Rogue that Lapis had willingly left their room to explore the castle grounds.

And he couldn't even make a break for it - according to Professor McGonagall, his life was effectively bound to the Goblet of Fire, if he tried to leave, the Goblet's magic would see it as an attempt to break his (forced and unwilling) Contract and kill him.

Seated high in an oak tree along the bank of the large lake on the castle grounds, Lapis cast a suspicious eye on the groups of people lingering not to far from his small group; they were very obvious in their attempts to catch sight of him, and Lapis squirmed back closer to the trunk of the tree, wishing that most of the leaves hadn't already fallen to the ground so that he could have had an extra buffer between himself and the hungry gazes. Sting and Rogue were sparring below him, being extra careful not to use their magic, so at least their movements were drawing some of the eyes away from him, and Lector and Frosch cheered their respective Dragon Slayers on.

("Your father, James, was the first one he killed, I found him at the bottom of the stairs." Sirius' voice had been anguished, "He didn't have his wand on him. Lily, you mother, was in front of your crib... Neither of them had their wand." His godfather had stared at him, gray eyes pleading, "They loved you, with every fiber of their being.")

"Hey, Lapis!" The green eyed God Slayer twitched, glancing down to see that Sting and Rogue had broken apart, and the blond was grinning up at him, fangs flashing in the light. "How about a spar? You're looking pretty tense." Lapis blinked, meeting challenging blue eyes, and he raised his eyebrow, and Sting's grin widened.

The God Slayer sighed fondly, slipping from the branch into a controlled plummet, grinning despite himself as the wind whistled past his ears and his hair twisted through the displaced air like a banner. He felt Sting's hands grip his waist to slow his fall before he could hit the ground, the Dragon Slayer's enhanced strength easily taking his lighter weight in an action that had become a game to the two of them.

He came to a stop, toes brushing the grass, and Lapis let out an exhilarated laugh, his hand planted on Sting's shoulders, and the two Slayers shared a smile.

"You're on blondie."

Sting laughed and dropped the smaller Slayer, giving both the chance to leap away from other.

"No magic." Blue eyes shone with amusement as one leg twisted behind him, and Sting raised his fists. "Everything else is fair game."

Legs parting, Lapis lowered his center of gravity. Sting was a tough one to fight against, he was strong and quick on his feet, with a mind for battle strategy; Lapis was faster and more flexible, he could land more hits, but Sting's attacks always did more damage. Their spars always came down to stamina.

Sting moved first, closing the distance between them with a couple quick strides to aim a high roundhouse at Lapis' head, then used his leftover momentum when Lapis dodged and jabbed him in the ribs to twist away from any furthur attacks, bouncing away on his heels. The God Slayer moved next, darting forward then sliding under the blond's swing, spinning on his toes to jab the Dragon Slayer at the base of his spine, followed by a shove to his waist.

He was forced to retreat, however, when Sting jerked his elbow back quick enough to catch Lapis in the chin and-

"Potter!"

The two sparring partners froze, completely against their wills as their muscles locked, and the man in the long black robes swept forward, wand in hand as he sneered.

"Brawling like a pair of dull-minded ruffians," The man - Snake, was it? Lapis hadn't really cared much when Dumbledore had introduced them - sneered. "I should have guessed."

Sting released a rolling growl, which was quickly echoed by Rogue as the Shadow Dragon Slayer prowled forward, red eyes flashing. The oily Professor's eyes flicked towards the two Dragon Slayers, before dismissively looking back towards Lapis.

The God Slayer couldn't help but bristle when he saw the cold hatred and utter disgust in the man's black stare.

(He looked at him the same way the Dursleys had, lIke he was a much despised smudge on their shiney shoes.)

"Potter," The Professor sneered, "The Headmaster is waiting for you."

"Fuck you." Lapis spat right back, summoning his magic, and he took whatever amusement he could watching the man startle slightly as green crystals shot across the grass from where the God Slayer stood, and the man was forced to jump to the side to avoid the spears of crystallized magic aimed for him.

Lapis was angry; he was tense and agitated, his efforts to calm down ruined, the truth of his parents echoing in his mind (they had died to protect him, they had loved him), and the attempts to try to control him only fed his fury at being trapped amongst people that made his skin crawl. He may have been human, but he had inherited enough of his mother's being that it enfuriated him; gods were not meant to be chained by the whims of mortals and fools.

"My name is Lapis Lazuli," The God Slayer snarled as he shook off the spell holding him in place, his wrath making his magic visible as it writhed around him like living vines. Eye glowing, the teenager took a threatening step forward, "I expect you to use it, you piece of poisoned shit."

The man's lips curled in contempt, but his paling face revealed how nervous Lapis' magic made him, "Arrogant, just like your father, Potter."

His green eye narrowed furthur, "Are you so inept that you bring a dead man into a loosing battle?" Lapis smirked, deciding to play along with the irratating man's verbal vitrol. "Go on, insult me. It would be nothing I haven't heard before. I dare you, Worm."

"Detention, Potter!"

A harsh bark of laughter was his answer, "I'm not your student, Professor." He mocked, "I never was. Now run back to your master, Dog, and tell him to eat shit, because I want nothing to do with him." The magic holding Sting had broken, and the blond had prowled to his side with the grace of a hunting predator, and Lapis strightened to glower at the dark man, before turning on his heel, and striding away, a Dragon Slayer on either side of him, and two Exceeds in front of him.

(He never noticed darkened blue eyes watching him, slit pupils blown wide at his rare display of temper.

But Rogue did, and the Shadow Dragon Slayer smirked.)

Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc

Chapter Eleven : Rutile

Rutile quartz is said to intensify the power of quartz crystal, rutile quartz is thought to assist one in getting to the root of a problem.

Unknown Location, Earthland; Year X777

"Little One, it's time to wake." A soft voice said, words echoing and distant to the unconscious boy's partially-aware mind, and a gentle hand brushed against his cheek. "You are safe now, Little Gem, I will not harm you."

The muscles of his face spasmed, eyelashes fluttering against his cheek, and the blurry world was revealed to him.

There was a woman leaning over him, with skin the colour of the garden soil Aunt Petunia liked to have him working in, and hair that looked like moss and peppered with flowers. The woman smiled at him, and the boy blinked, drowsy, as her diamond-like eyes seems to glow.

"Hello, Little One." The woman soothed, "How are you feeling?"

How was he feeling?

The boy blinked again; he couldn't feel one side of his face, and his arm was numb, the only feeling he had was in his palm, which was laying in soft grass. His throat was burning, and it felt like little needles were stabbing his lungs.

The green-haired woman’s eyes softened, "Ah, my apologies, Sweetling. Do not speak, your throat is still healing." She sighed, hand moving towards cheek, and the boy couldn't quite stop the flinch the movement evoked.

He instantly went rigid and still; Uncle Vernon didn't like it when the boy moved away from punishment.

If anything, the woman looked sadder, and the boy was shocked when she only gently smoothed her fingers across his cheekbone.

"I won't hurt you, Pebble," She told him, "And whatever monster did this to you, I will ensure that they never do it again."

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 12 November 1994

She had been such a naive fool when she had been younger; Hermione Granger had always thought that she knew the world, that she could always trust her books and authority figures to show her right from wrong. Her awakening to how cruel the world around her could be started when she had been introduced to the Wizarding World, the then-eleven year old girl had been so excited; a whole new world for her to explore and learn about! The young Hermione had never believed in magic or dragons or unicorns, it had all seemed childish to her until Professor McGonagall had come to her door and proved her wrong.

Her parents hadn't been as excited as their daughter, in fact they had been down right fearful for her, and after Halloween of her First Year, when Hermione had woken up in the hospital with with a permanent limp and a slight stutter after nearly being killed by a mountain troll that had gotten into the school - the supposed Safest Place in Britain, she realized they had been right to worry. She had been lonely, her Gryffindor Housemates hated her, and Ronald Weasley had said so many mean things to her that Hermione had retreated to a bathroom; she had learned in her first week at Hogwarts that the weak did not survive in Gryffindor Tower, that any kind of weakness would result in harassment.

You either sank, or you learned how to swim. As long as you learned to conform, then yes, Professor McGonagall had been telling the truth; your House would become your family.

Her parents had wanted to immediately pull her from Hogwarts when they had learned the extent of their daughter's injuries, but Hermione hadn't wanted to leave. Yes, she was miserable, but learning about magic had been the closest thing to belonging that she had ever felt, so her parents had conceded to her wishes; she would be allowed to stay in Hogwarts on one condition.

She was not to be near Ronald Weasley.

And that was how she found herself becoming a Ravenclaw.

She still stood out, of course; she was the girl who had to be Resorted, the girl who couldn't walk without a leg brace, and the girl with a stutter, but she was intelligent enough that they either respected her, or left her alone.

The whole situation had given her a new outlook on life, she was colder, less excited and less likely to speak up in class. She had to learn to read people by their eyes and their actions, and when she met Luna Lovegood, Hermione had managed to see past the rumours about the strange little blonde girl who talked to shadows and looked right through you, to see the sharp intelligent mind under her dazed silver eyes, and she found herself growing fond of the younger girl.

At fifteen, Hermione was smarter than she had been at eleven, she knew how cruel the world was to those who were different, she knew how to spot a lie, and she had learned that books and stories could be false.

And Albus Dumbledore was nothing if not a liar.

Something of the story he had spun about Harry Potter reeked of lies, and Hermione Granger was determined to find out what.

"Hello!"

The Ravenclaw Fourth Year startled slightly as Luna seemed to appear out of nowhere, brown eyes moving away from her essay and to the petite blonde girl who should have been in class. Hermione may have had a free period, but her younger friend did not.

"Are you s-skipping class?" Hermione asked, agast, and Luna merely smiled mysteriously, hugging an ancient tome to her thin chest.

"The Blibbering Humdingers are whispering," The blonde sang quietly, "There are other places to be, Hermione Granger."

Hermione straightened, essay forgotten as she swiftly cleaned her small area, brown eyes sharp.

If there was another thing Hermione Granger had learned through experiencing the Wizarding World, was to trust Luna Lovegood's hunches and strange predictions. If the blonde was saying they needed to somewhere else, then that was what they needed to do.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 12 November 1994

Sting and Lapis had fallen asleep curled up together in the warm sands at the shore of the lake, leaving Rogue to stand guard. He couldn't really hold it against them either, because he knew that Lapis had not been sleeping well since they had been summoned to the school, and he hadn't been surprised that Sting had taken it upon himself to make sure that the God Slayer rested.

The Shadow Dragon Slayer gently played with Frosch's ears, keeping one ear on the Exceeds' conversation, while the other was pricked for the sound of anyone approaching them as red eyes moved from the frankly adorable picture the two made, then back towards the grounds.

Honestly, they were both so clueless.

His nose twitched as the wind changed, and the Dragon Slayer straightened, gaze snapping over to where the scent that had caught his nose originated. There were two girls heading his way, one lagging behind a step because of a limp, while her companion skipped ahead.

Red eyes shifted towards the girl in the lead, waves of dirty blonde hair bounced with every move she made and large silver eyes gleamed as she smiled at him. Her brown haired friend kept her thick hair tamed with a severe braid, showcasing the jagged scar on her brow, while the blonde kept her hair loose around her.

"Good morning, Raios Cheney!"

Rogue twitched, body flinching as the blonde girl spoke his birth name. His human mind disagreed sharply with the name he had abandoned, even as his dragon seemed oddly pleased with it. "Rogue." He corrected absently, and the blonde girl smiled at him.

"Alright." She agreed plesently, "It's good to finally meet you."

Rogue squinted at the two girls suspiciously, and the brown haired girl sighed, brows crinkling and pulling at her scar.

"You s-should introd-duce yours-self first, Luna." Her words were slurred, but her eyes were sharp and intelligent, and the blonde - Luna, the name suited her - giggled, bouncing on her toes.

"I'm Luna Lovegood," Luna chirped, "We're going to be such good friends!"

The other girl sighed, but she sounded fond when she spoke, despite her frown, "Hermione Granger."

Then Luna was skipping towards him, dropping gracefully onto the grass at his side to smile up at him when he blinked at the sudden closeness, followed by a large, old book being dropped into his lap.

"When the time comes," The blonde girl sang, "Listen to the dragons, this book will lead the way."

Chapter Text

Hogwarts Arc
Chapter Twelve : Chalcedony
Chalcedony is considered a sacred stone by Native Americans, chalcedony nurtures and promotes brotherhood and goodwill. Chalcedony is said to alleviate hostility, irritability and melancholy.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Scotland, Earth; 13 November 1994

"Where did you get this book?" Lapis breathed in shock, green eye moving from the ancient pages and to the smiling blonde girl who had made herself comfortable at Rogue's side, her brown haired companion having had to make her way back to the castle for her classes.

Luna Lovegood stared at him with wide silver eyes, head tilting. "It's been in my mother's family for generations, passed down through the firstborn daughters." The blonde witch said cheerfully, "It's the homeland of my ancestors."

"What is it?" Sting asked, leaning closer to the dark haired God Slayer.

"The magical history of Earthland." Lapis muttered, flipping back to the first page to gently run his fingers over the graceful caligraphy spelling 'Luscinia Vermilion' followed by 'Circe Argyros', 'Diana Galanis', and 'Pandora Athas', and finally 'Luna Lovegood'. Luna beamed at their shocked stares. "Mother told me about books like these; they're very rare, and charmed to self-update. This copy looks hundreds of years old."

"Great-grandmother brought it with her when she came here." The blonde sang, "She wrote all about her travels, and her theories on magical transportation in the margins."

"It doesn't look like this has updated for a number of years though." Lapis said quietly under his breath, "Maybe the lack of proper magic to power the charms..." Sting shifted closer to peer down at the book, and Lapis bumped his nose against the blond's shoulder fondly.

"Your great-grandmother was from Earthland." Rogue echoed flatly, and Luna nodded excitedly.

"She was an explorer!" She chirped, "What better place for an adventure, than another universe?"

Drawn back into the conversation, Lapis strightened, "This could help us get back." Lapis whispered, eye wide as he stared at the girl, who smile at him. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Lapis Lazuli." Luna's smile was playfully mysterious, and she tilted her head to the side, letting dirty blond waves fall over her shoulder. "I do have a request though," Lapis glanced up, eye flashing suspiciously, but the girl's smile never left her face. "When you leave, please take Hermione and I with you."

"What about your families here?" Rogue spoke up, red eyes glancing down at the top of the blonde’s head as she snuggled in closer to him, and to Lapis' surprise, Rogue didn't shove her away.

From the way Frosch was eyeing their Dragon Slayer with stunned eyes, the little green Exceed had noticed as well.

"Daddy isn't well," Luna admitted, her smile shrinking slightly, and wide silvery eyes sad. "He's been fading away since Mummy died. His fae blood doesn't want to live without his mate, but he doesn't want to leave me alone." Her shoulders drooped and she fiddled absently with the ends of her hair. "I look a lot like Mummy, and it hurts him to see me. I don't want him to suffer anymore."

"And Hermione?" Sting asked, and Luna's lips quirked.

"She needs to find a place she can be herself." The blonde then straightened, large eyes sliding back towards the looming figure of the castle, "Oh, dear." She said worriedly, and Lapis followed her gaze to where a teenaged girl with red hair was making her way towards them. "This won't be good - That's Ginevra Weasley, we grew up together." Luna told him, silvery eyes shifting back to the God Slayer. "She's obsessed with the idea of The Boy-Who-Lived; she's been claiming since we were six years old that she'd be the one to marry Harry Potter."

"Uh oh." Lector said quietly, and Frosch nodded.

"Fro thinks so too."

Rogue pressed his lips together in a tight line as both Lapis and Sting stiffened, the blond's teeth grinding together audibly.

"Ginny isn't a bad person," Luna insisted, "She's just... strange."

"Strange." Lector echoed flatly, and the blonde girl smiled sheepishly.

Lapis stiffened even furthur, shutting the tome with a snap when the Weasley girl came to a stop close to him, brown eyes staring at him heatedly as she twirled long red hair between her fingers and batted her eyelashes at him.

"Hi, Harry." She greeted airily, and his shoulders drew back in furious annoyance as she sat down next to him, all but snuggling into his side. "I'm Ginny. Ginny Weasley."

A green eye shot between the red haired girl and the blond Dragon Slayer at his other side, as Sting released a long, drawn out growl, bristling as his pupils slit even furthur than they already were.

"My name is Lapis." He insisted, voice tight with agrivation, twitching to gently shove the girl away from him as he scuttled closer to Sting's side, green eye flinty. He didn't even flinch when the blond's arm snaked around his shoulders to pull him even closer.

Sting was safe, the girl was not.

Brown eyes stared at Sting coldly, before shifting back Lapis and growing gooey once more.

Lapis cringed, before letting out a long, angry sigh. He was getting really tired of this shitty world and the people in it. "Listen, I'm not Harry Potter, my name is Lapis Lazuli. I don't care who you are, but at the moment my patience is wearing really thin, and I really don't want to deal with anymore crazies who think they have a right to my life." A single green eye narrowed coldly as the anger he had been bottling up since his arrival came spilling out. A part of him felt guilty that he was taking it out on a complete stranger who was apparently enamored with a false image someone had built around the name 'Harry Potter', but the rest of him couldn't be bothered to stop. "I don't know you, I don't know Albus fucking Dumbledore, and I'm here against my will. If you're not here to give me intelligent conversation, go the fuck away."

Angry tears in her eyes, the girl bolted to her feet and ran away.

The Boy-Who-Lived, A No-Show!?

Strategy or Arrogance?

The Weighing of the Wands is an integral part of the historical Triwizard Tournament, where a wand master studies a wand to insure it is in top shape. This ceremony is an important tradition to Tournament Champions, and it was where I, in the name of my loyal readers and his loyal fans, was looking to snag an interview with our elusive boy hero.

Therefore, it was shocking, dear readers, when Harry Potter (14) denied to grace us with his presence.

Harry Potter is one of the most sought-after teenaged wizards in Britain, a living legend amongst his fans, and the last survivor of an important and wealthy Pureblood family. Not even his status of a half blood deters his popularity amongst the citizens of the Magical World.

Perhaps the Boy-Who-Lived has decided, in the name of strategy, not to reveal the make of his wand to the other Champions. Or perhaps he thinks he doesn't need to participate in the traditional ceremonies included in the Triwizard Tournament?

Are we looking at a young master of strategy, or a boy who has allowed his fame to go to his head?

Don't worry, loyal readers, for I will endeavor to bring you the truth.

Rita Skeeter, Senior Reporter for the Daily Prophet