282A/N - Well I must admit to being gratified by so many people favoriting my little story. I said I might continue it and obviously I'm going to or you wouldn't be reading this.
I don't have a larger plan for this one. I'm just putting up another one shot about this AU. Any future chapters will also be complete stories in and of themselves. Therefore the thread will continue to be listed as "complete." If a larger plan does emerge later on then great. Right now it's just the occasional incident in the life of the Royal Family of Dragons.
One thing to mention: from now on when Bahamut and Daranni are in human form around other HP characters I will refer to them as James and Lily to distinguish their human selves from their dragon ones. Harry will always be Harry, no matter what form he takes.
Thanks to those of you who left me some feedback. I really do appreciate it.
Oh, and I don't own either Harry Potter or Dungeons and Dragons. They belong to their respective creators.
2) A MARAUDER REUNION
Sirius Black didn't know how long he'd been in Azkaban. It could have been days, weeks, months, or even years. Time didn't seem to have much meaning in this place. It was true he could see day and night through the window of his cell but when the dementors came around it was very easy to lose track of, well, everything. If it was day before the dementors came around his cell and still day after they were gone that could mean that it was the same day or maybe it was tomorrow, or two days later, or even more days than that.
On this day Sirius was lying on the ragged broken mattress that he had for a bed staring out the window at the sky. He was fairly clearheaded today. The dementors had not been around at all since yesterday which was quite unusual. Normally one would expect to have them pass by one's cell at least twice a day if not more.
While he was thinking this over the door to his cell was unlocked and opened by a (human) guard.
"Black, you've got visitors" said the guard who motioned for him to get up.
"I do?" asked Sirius, "who is it?" The guard didn't answer but just gestured with his wand for Sirius to accompany him. Having no choice Sirius left his cell to find two more guards waiting outside to go with him to the visiting room.
Upon reaching the visiting room he was secured to the prisoner's chair after which a second door opened and his two visitors entered the room. Sirius' mouth dropped open in surprise when he saw who one of them was.
"Close your mouth grandson" said the first visitor, "it is inappropriate for a Black to look so undignified."
"Yes grandfather" said Sirius to his grandfather Arcturus Black, "I'm just surprised to see you."
"As am I to be here" the reply, "it is none of my concern if you wish to ruin your life, but I will not have a member of my family thrown in prison without a proper trial, no matter how much of a disappointment he may be to the name of Black."
"Thank you grandfather I love you too" said Sirius sarcastically.
"Silence you insolent whelp" snapped Arcturus, "I'm not doing this for you. It sets a bad precedent for the ministry to imprison anyone without a trial, especially a Black. As soon as I realized that had happened I contacted our family lawyers. They especially recommended this man who is here with me. This is Mr. Borkadd and he will be representing you."
Sirius looked at Mr. Borkadd. He was a fairly nondescript looking man except for two things: his hair which was a very golden blonde, and his very intense golden eyes. One look at them and you would never forget them.
"Pleased to meet you Mr. Borkadd" said Sirius, "that's an unusual name you have. I don't think I've ever heard it before."
"We're a very private family" said the lawyer, "after you've been freed I might tell you a few things about us if you're interested, and I feel like it. Now, let us begin..."
The trial was held several days later. Not all that much needs to be said about it. Under Veritaserum Sirius testified that 1) he was not a death eater, 2) he was not the Potter secret keeper, 3) Peter Pettigrew was, 4) He had not killed Pettigrew or all of those muggles, 5) Pettigrew had done that before escaping.
It also came out that he was an unregistered animagus however after spending time in Azkaban already his punishment for that was reduced to a simple fine which was quickly paid.
Following his acquittal Sirius spent several days at St. Mungo's being treated for dementor exposure. It was there that he found out that he had been imprisoned for several months. It had been early November when he was arrested. Now it was almost the beginning of the summer. It really was hard to keep track of time in Azkaban.
On the third day of his stay Remus Lupin came to visit him. Their reunion was an emotional one. Lupin had believed Sirius to be guilty and was extremely apologetic. For his part Sirius blamed everything on Pettigrew and told Lupin not to worry about it.
Remus was with Sirius when the latter was finally released from St. Mungo's. As they were getting ready to leave Sirius' room for the last time an owl flew in the window with a letter for Sirius.
Meet me in room 7 at the Leaky Cauldron. Come at once. Bring Remus Lupin with you if he is there.
Mr. Borkadd
"I wonder what my lawyer wants" said Sirius.
"Well Padfoot" said Remus, "do you have any pressing plans stopping you from finding out right now?"
"No Moony I do not. Do you?"
"Not at all."
"Then let's go and see what this is all about" said Sirius and they both turned down the street and headed for the Leaky Cauldron. It only took about 20 to 25 minutes on foot before they reached Charing Cross Road and entered the Leaky Cauldron. With a nod to Tom behind the bar they went upstairs, found room 7, knocked on the door, and were invited inside.
"Mr. Black, Mr. Lupin, thank you for coming" said Mr. Borkadd as he gestured for them to sit down and served them some tea. They talked about small matters for a while before they finally got down to business.
"You're probably wondering why I wanted to see the two of you" the lawyer began, "Mr. Black when I first met you in Azkaban I said that after you were freed I might tell you a few things about my family if you were interested."
"I remember" said Sirius, "is that why we're here?"
"In a way" was the reply, "you'll learn the truth about me and why I came here. But before I say anything else I will need a magical oath from both of you not reveal any of what you hear from me to anyone unless I or my sovereign allows you to do so."
Both Marauders were quite intrigued and they both quickly gave the requested oath.
"Thank you" said Mr. Borkadd, "first I will tell you that my full name is Borkadd the Claw."
"That's an unusual name for a man to have" said Remus.
"And if I were a man you would be absolutely right" said Mr. Borkadd with a smirk. For a brief instant both Sirius and Remus thought they saw a hint of something else in Mr. Borkadd, something that was most definitely not human.
"What are you?" asked Remus in a slightly awed voice.
"I am Borkadd the Claw" was the reply, "hand of justice for my liege Bahamut." Sirius' eyes widened.
"The dragon king?" he gasped.
"Oh so people do remember the higher dragons" said Borkadd.
"I'm a Black" said Sirius, "of course I remember."
"I know of them too" said Remus, "I found numerous references to both Bahamut and his sister (and polar opposite) Tiamat during my various researches over time. But I thought they were only legends."
"No, they're real" said Borkadd, "Bahamut sent me to Earth because he wishes for the two of you to come to his realm to meet with him. To avoid unnecessary talk I couldn't just remove you, Sirius, from your cell. I had to get you out in a manner that everyone would accept without any problems. Now that it has been done I can invite you to come with me back to Bahamut's home on Mt. Celestia."
Both Sirius and Remus were shocked by this revelation.
"Did my grandfather know about you?" asked Sirius.
"No" said Borkadd, "Arcturus Black knows me only as the lawyer that was recommended to represent you. We've had no dealings since your trial and I don't expect to see him again."
"Why does the dragon king want to see us?" asked Remus.
"That is not for me to say" said Borkadd, "but I think you'll both be pleased with what you learn. Will you accept his invitation?"
"Well I can't say I'm not intrigued" said Sirius, "but how do we get there? Mt. Celestia is not a place that you can just apparate to you know. In fact, I don't know how one gets there at all."
"You accompany me" said Borkadd as he stood up, "all of us who live on Mt. Celestia can come and go as we please. And we can bring visitors. Just take my hands."
Borkadd held out his hands and almost automatically Remus stood up and took one while Sirius stood up and took the other. Borkadd nodded.
"We go" he said. Neither Sirius or Remus knew exactly what Mr. Borkadd did but for a split second reality seemed to turn inside out and then all three of them were somewhere else.
"That was brilliant!" Sirius exclaimed after taking a second to catch his breath.
"Thank you" said Borkadd, "welcome to the audience chamber."
Sirius and Remus looked around. The three of them had appeared in a very large, lavishly decorated room. The room was so large that both Sirius and Remus were convinced that Hogwarts could have fit in it and still have room to spare. And yet, despite the large size of the room there was no furniture, at least no human-sized furniture. At one end of the room there was a low platform which contained a (very) large thin mat spread over it. There were a couple of enormous arches at either end of the room which clearly led to other rooms in this place.
"Dragons don't really need furniture" said Borkadd as if reading Sirius' thoughts.
"I guess they don't" said Sirius.
"Wait here" said Borkadd, "while I let the King know you have arrived." As Borkadd turned towards one of the room's exits he changed. Where before there had been a middle-aged human there was now a huge gold dragon. He turned his head and looked at the two Marauders.
"Yes, this is my real form" he said, "if you know about my liege's court you should not be surprised."
"You're one of the inner seven" said Remus.
"Indeed" said Borkadd as he turned again and left the room. Sirius said nothing. He had read about Bahamut and his court from books in the Black library. He knew about the seven gold dragons that were the dragon king's closest advisers. He had not expected that one of them would personally bring him and Remus to Bahmut's palace.
Both friends stood silently in the middle of the audience chamber as they tried to absorb everything that was happening to them. Finally Remus turned and looked out one of the windows. His eyebrows went up at what he was seeing. Sirius also looked out the window. Outside he could see a vast green land of low hills and valleys. Here and there were stands of trees. Off in the distance there appeared to be a small settlement of some kind, a village perhaps? It was all very beautiful. It also appeared to be moving as the landscape was sliding in one direction past the window.
"Of course" said Remus as he nodded his head, "Bahamut's palace is said to move around several of the planes of Celestia. I guess it's true."
"Yes" said Sirius as he watched in wonder as the scenery went by, "I never thought I would travel to another plane of existence, let alone a place like Mt. Celestia. As far as I know the knowledge to move between the various planes was lost centuries ago."
"As far as we know" echoed Remus, "But you heard what Borkadd said. Everyone who lives here can come and go as they wish."
"True" said Sirius, "you know, I wonder if the Unspeakables are researching dimensional travel?"
"It wouldn't surprise me if they are" said Remus, "it sounds like their sort of thing. Some very powerful beings are said to live on Mt. Celestia besides Bahamut and his court."
"I know" said Sirius, "and I would rather not meet them."
"Why not?" asked Remus.
"Powerful beings are, well powerful" said Sirius, "much more powerful than we are. I wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of beings like that, even if they are good beings."
They halted their conversation when they heard loud footsteps coming from the same arch that Borkadd had exited through. It proved to be Borkadd himself returning and he was not alone. With him was by far the largest dragon either of them had ever seen. Unlike Borkadd his scales were platinum in color. There were also feelings of power, strength, wisdom, and majesty coming from him. Both Sirius nor Remus looked at him in awe. They had no doubts about who it was. And they were right.
"Sirius Black, Remus Lupin" said Borkadd, "may I present my liege King Bahamut of Celestia."
"Thank you Borkadd" said Bahamut, "leave us now so we may talk." Borkadd dipped his head in acknowledgment and left the chamber. Bahamut turned back to his guests in time to see both Sirius and Remus bowing to him. He chuckled to himself as he thought 'this is going to be fun.'
"You may rise" Bahamut said to the two humans who did so and looked up at him.
"We are honored to be here your majesty" said Sirius.
"Yes" said Remus, "thank you for inviting us."
"You are welcome" said Bahamut. He looked at the two of them with a critical eye for a long moment.
"It's good to see you again," the dragon king said at last, "Padfoot, Moony, you're both looking fairly well."
Sirius' and Remus' jaws immediately dropped to the floor. Whatever they had been expecting Bahamut to say it was not that. Bahamut smirked.
"I suggest you both close your mouths before something large flies into them" the dragon king said.
"How do you know those nicknames" Remus gasped out when he got his voice back.
Bahamut laughed. It was the deep, rich laugh of a very amused dragon who knew he had gotten one over on his guests.
"Sirius" said Bahamut, "I always loved how much you look like a fish after you've been pranked."
"How do you know these things?" demanded Remus who had recovered quickly.
"I know them" said Bahamut, "because I was there with you the whole time. I'm Prongs."
Silence.
Dead silence.
Both Sirius and Remus stared at Bahamut in disbelief.
"You can't be" Sirius finally said in a small voice, "Prongs is – "
" – Dead?" Bahamut interrupted him, "yes and no. My mortal body is dead. When that happens I get sent back here and returned to my true self for a while to heal." Seeing both Remus' and Sirius' evident confusion he sighed and gestured with one claw. Two human sized chairs appeared next to the humans.
"Sit down" the dragon said, "and I'll explain."
Once they were sitting down Bahamut told them about how he and his mate had incarnated themselves as James and Lily Potter, how they had grown up, married, had a child, and were eventually killed thereby being sent back here to their real forms. He also told them about how his memories as Bahamut were sealed away during his mortal life so he did not know that he was anything other than James Potter during that time.
Both Sirius and Remus found the story very difficult to believe but Bahamut told them things that only they and James Potter would have known so they both had to accept that the king of dragons really was their dead friend James. To drive the point firmly home Bahamut turned himself back into James Potter and stood before them grinning his well-known prankster grin. Both Sirius and Remus leapt to their feet and threw themselves on their friend, wrapping him in a tight embrace from both sides.
"Prongs!" Sirius said, practically weeping with joy, "it really is you! I can't believe it. You're alive!"
"Nothing's been right since you've been gone" said Remus from his other side, "Sirius was sent to Azkaban without a trial, Peter is a traitor, Alice and Frank were tortured into insanity by death eaters after Voldemort fell, too many of the bastard's inner circle bought their ways out of prison through bribery and pleading the imperius curse – I could go on."
"There's no need" their friend James said, "I understand."
"What about Lily?" asked Sirius.
"She's here" was the reply, "you should know that her real name is 'Daranni.' She's a silver dragon."
"And Harry?" asked Remus, "Dumbledore won't let me see him."
"He's here too" said James, "I had him brought here as soon as I realized what had happened. One of my inner circle found him on the Dursley doorstep."
"What?!" barked Sirius, "Dumbledore sent him to Petunia's family? Was he crazy?"
"Possibly" said James, "he's old enough for dementia to be setting in."
"Does he know, well about you being – ?"
"No" said James cutting him off, "and I would like to keep it that way, at least for now. He has no business interfering with my family. Will you keep this to yourselves?"
"Oh yes" said Sirius, "I just hope I get to see his face if the day ever comes that he finally learns who you really are."
"Same here Prongs" said Remus.
"I'll make sure you have ringside seats" said James, "now would you like to see Lily and Harry?"
"YES!" both Sirius and Remus exclaimed together before looking at each other and laughing. James smiled and shifted back into his true form before looking at them both with a solemn face.
"One thing" said Bahamut, "we can't come back to Earth, at least not as we were. You must accept that James and Lily Potter are officially dead and only Bahamut and Daranni remain. Daranni will not answer to the name of Lily anymore and except for this conversation I am no longer using the name of James." He stopped and looked at them thoughtfully for a moment before continuing with a slight smile "however I am still your friend, and the two of you may continue to call me 'Prongs' if you wish."
"Oh Merlin yes!" said Sirius with enthusiasm while Remus simply smiled and nodded.
"Good" said Bahamut, "now if you'll come this I'll take you to see Daranni and Harry."
Bahamut led Sirius and Remus out of the audience chamber and back the way he had come. Although he was walking quite slowly his strides were so long because he was so large that both Sirius and Remus often had to run to keep up with him. The size of the chambers they passed through also didn't help. Dragon architecture is inherently enormous. By the time they got where they were going both humans felt as if they had run several kilometers.
"Next time can we take a portkey or use brooms?" asked Sirius panting from the effort.
"Sorry" said Bahamut not looking the least bit sorry, "my home wasn't built for human-sized people."
"So we noticed" said Remus also breathing hard, "are we there yet?"
"Yes" said Bahamut leading them into another chamber. Inside the chamber Sirius and Remus saw another dragon, silver this time, and almost as big as Bahamut himself.
"Daranni my love" said Bahamut, "our guests have arrived.
"So I see" said the silver dragon coming towards them, "well, well, look what the beholder dragged in."
"Now dear, there's no need to insult beholders like that" said Bahamut to her with a smirk on his face.
"Sorry" she replied before looking more directly at the two humans, "hello Remus, Sirius. It's good to see you again."
"It's amazing to see you Lily" said Sirius, "I mean Daranni. We're so glad you're alive."
"We are" said Remus echoing Sirius.
"Thank you" said Daranni, "there's someone else here who's also glad to see you."
"What – ?" Sirius began to say before a loud joyful cry of "PA-FOO!" was heard in the room and he was knocked flat on his back. It took a few seconds for him to recover from the hit and while he lay on the floor he heard a loud "MOON!" and an "oof" as another body hit the floor.
"Harry!" Sirius heard Bahamut say, "what have I told you about greeting guests?" Despite his apparently stern tone it was obvious the dragon king was trying very hard not to laugh.
"Harry?"asked Sirius, finally sitting up. Remus was sitting up next to him. There was a dragon sitting on his legs looking at his face. This dragon was very small, about the size of a golden retriever. Its scales were a mixture of platinum and silver and when it turned to look back at Sirius he could see it had very bright green eyes.
"Harry?" asked Sirius, amazed. The little dragon looked at Sirius and then turned into a human toddler with a giggle.
"I don't believe it" exclaimed Sirius, "it really is Harry."
"Of course it is" said Daranni, "my husband and I are both dragons. Why would our son not be a dragon too?"
"But he was born a human" Sirius pointed out while Remus hugged Harry
"He was" nodded Bahamut, "but he's still our son. After he was brought here I released his true draconic self."
"He can switch between being a human and a dragon quite easily" said Daranni.
"As can we" said Bahamut. He and Daranni looked at each other for a moment before they both nodded. As one they transformed back into James and Lily Potter.
"You see?" said Lily. She reached down and took Harry from Remus.
"Prongs this is all amazing" said Remus, "how I wish we could tell everyone about this."
"No!" said James forcefully, "you must not do that."
"Please understand" said Lily, "James and Lily Potter are dead. When we were sent back here we left our mortal bodies behind."
"She's right Moony" said Sirius, "I saw both of their bodies that night. They can't just return to Earth as James and Lily."
"But if you want we can take these forms when you visit us" said James.
"Okay" said Remus, "I do realize why everyone can't know the truth about you. It would complicate things."
"It would" said James, "we'd rather Harry's true heritage remain unknown, at least for now. We mean it. We don't want you to tell anyone. It's enough that the wizarding world idolizes him as the 'Boy-How-Lived.'"
"Not even Dumbledore?" asked Remus.
"Especially not Dumbledore" said James, "don't misunderstand me; we both like the headmaster but he can be very manipulative. He tends to think about the bigger picture and the greater good of the nation as opposed to the good of the individual. As a king myself I understand that quite well – indeed there are times when I must do similar things. That's why I want to keep our son away from him until he's able to stand on his own two or four feet."
"What about when he attends Hogwarts?" asked Sirius.
"We're not sure that he'll be going to Hogwarts" said Lily.
"We'll deal with that later" said James, "we have plenty of time. Now would you like to see your rooms?"
"We have rooms here?" asked Sirius.
"Of course" said James, "you're Harry's godfather and honorary uncle. You're family and I know Harry will love to have you both around. Come whenever you want, stay as long as you like – and yes, the beds in your quarters are human-sized."
"How will we get here and back from Earth?" asked Remus.
"We'll arrange it" said James, "however this is just for the two of you. You WILL keep this to yourselves, is that understood?"
"Clearly" said Remus.
"Marauder's honor" said Sirius raising his right hand.
"Good" said James. He turned back into Bahamut while Lily turned back into Daranni and Harry turned back into his dragon form and flew up to perch on his mother's back.
"Now if you'll come with us" said Bahamut, "we'll get you settled."
Sirius and Remus became frequent visitors to Bahamut's palace. During their visits Bahamut and Daranni often took on the forms of James and Lily (but not always and only in private). Harry was always glad to see the two marauders and it can be justly said that they helped make his childhood very enjoyable.
THE END of A Marauder Reunion
A/N - Okay, there you have another slice of life from this AU. Borkadd is another of Bahamut's seven closest councilors. As far as Harry going to Hogwarts in the future? Maybe he will, maybe he won't. If I ever decide to write that story you'll see it here (maybe).