Blackhaven: Fractured Faerie Tales

Declan listened to her go on about this wizarding school, trying hard not to roll his eyes at the mere fact of it. However the alley and several other things appealed to him, he tried not to laugh at the suggestion of wands, sure he and Oriana had them at the Arcana Cabana but those wands were enchanted with a certain spell such as fire or ice or sleep.

"Does it matter if we fit in? If anything I think they'd be terrified of me, you would be just fine." He was looking at a website while eating and paying Oriana as much attention as he could, he was reading Will Scarlett's blog on places he's traveled and something about a "wizard" named Voldimort caught his eye.

He tried not to laugh at the thought of "Death Eaters" sure they were a thing, but not nearly as dangerous as the Addams Family or Jafar or even Peter Pan and his crew. Though it was late November, Declan agreed that he and Oriana would need to dress warmly.

But Declan being playful copped a feel on Oriana's chest under her vest, obviously with the time being a factor there was not going to be another romp. They needed to get ready to catch that 0900 ride.

"Dragon skin coat or the Aegis coat?"

He always wore the rain/trench coat during this time of year, with a hood, during the warmer months Declan had hoodies and short sleeved hoodies he wore when on tasks.

The dragon skin one he was mentioning wasn't actual dragon skin, true it had been made from a dragon's scale. The other was as gift from Athena his protector, being made from the Aegis that Zeus had used to over through the titans.

However Declan did have a surprise for Oriana, a leather jacket of her own with a collar that had been made with phoenix feathers, it was really his leather jacket that he had tailored for her using Mushu as the go between, that was why the dragon had come in being obnoxious about their night.

He was not going to dress up for this, he was going casual with cargo pants (who knew what they'd run up against) and a dark green shirt, it was made from sweat shirt material, but it was short sleeved. As Oriana knew he avoided long sleeves as they hindered his abilities, she would now notice a bracelet/bangle he was wearing, that bore the mark of the Minotaur.

"Even if they don't allow Mjölnir or Excalibur, we have other methods silly to handle ourselves. After dealing with the Addams' and the hydra, a troll would be a welcome change of pace. Could you check and see if we'll have to get a hotel to stay in or are we going to be confined to the school? What the hell is Azkaban?"
 
Oriana had squeaked when his hand wandered up her top but rolled over closer to him to kiss his cheek. She would never admit it to Merida and was so thankful that they'd been together at the Faraway Tree rather than the Arcana Cabana. Things had gotten loud last night and his sister wouldn't have let her hear the end of it. The last thing they would have wanted is for Winston to give them a disappointed parental look either. Still, she was enjoying this new side of Declan. It was surprisingly comfortable.

Oriana got up with Declan, peering at the two jacket he held out to her for choice. Instead of replying with the thought that the Aegis one would get attention from leering pre-teen girls, she silently put it back in his suitcase which left him holding the Dragon Skin one.

Her eyes ran appreciatively over the phoenix feather collared jacket, touching it lightly and giving him a small smile in reward. Oriana didn't like expensive gifts and hated it when Declan spent unnecessary money on her. The jacket however was obviously made just for her so she wasn't going to knock it after their first night together. Padding across the room, she sorted through her carry bag until she found a dark green cardigan with a matching skirt, some green tights and black buckled ankle boots. They'd go really well with the Phoenix jacket.

"I er-...I think it's a prison. Not very secure mind you. I think I read that we should be wary of breaking their laws and purchase a book on common civil laws from Diagon Alley. Azkaban sounded weird because it...has these creatures called Dementors that wander around wanting to kiss you and suck your soul out. Rather pervy if you ask me. Don't tell the Hatter, he'll try and employ them to keep his so called rebel waitresses in line." She scoffed and snuck into the en-suite, wanting to shower before Declan. "The Addams would probably adopt a few and keep them as pets." Or in Wednesdays case, she would cage one and experiment on it. "We stay at Hogwarts dorms...but I'm sure we can break a few school rules and find an empty room for ourselves."

Oriana piled her clothes onto a wooden table, and stared at herself in the full length mirror. As she'd noticed earlier she was covered in hickeys in the most random of places, laughing to herself a little she nodded to herself. Definitely would need that jacket Declan had got for her and a scarf. She wondered about his bracelets as she washed her hair, brushed her teeth and scrubbed herself down with some toffee scented shower gel. From the visions it was clearly linked to that incident with the Minotaur.

Oriana didn't waste time drying herself down and changing into her outfit, there was a new world to visit and it would be amazing to leave Blackhavens bullshit behind for at least a day or more. She hadn't forgotten Elinor's invitation and was still pissed at the so called noble family. It would take herculean effort to remain neutrally with them. Oriana tugged her boots on and hopped around the room grabbing last nights clothes to throw back in her bag and smoothing the bedspread.
 
"A prison, how quaint they really think they can keep those who know the arts in check. Oh well."

He wasn't impressed with this Azkaban nor the thought of Hogwarts dorms, but it could prove educational at least, though he was left to wonder how much attention he'd draw there given his bloodline and Mushu following him. Oriana got a small squeeze to her butt as they got ready with Declan putting on his matching boots for the coat Oriana had picked out for him.

He didn't spend money on her for the coat, he just had his leather jacket that she had been wearing resized and customized for her. He was adjusting his hood and belt before pulling his coat on, checking to see what tricks were in the pockets.

Declan rarely put tricks in his pockets unless he knew what he'd need. This case it was Mushu who provided a powder of burning, and orb of ice, a potion of illumination, and a deck of cards. Declan could only guess that the deck of cards was that enchanted set that when one was drawn it took on the form of what ever the card showed, for example if Declan pulled a diamonds card a diamond shaped shield would protect them.

"Higitus figitus zumbakazing. I want your attention, everything. We're packing to leave. Come on, let's go."

He waved his hands to make their traveling bags lighter.

Mushu's eyes got wide as if to say "oh shit".

"Hockety pockety wockety wack
Abra cabra dabra nack
Shrink in size very small
We've got to save enough room for all
Higitus figitus migitus mum
Prestidigitonium

Alakafez, balakazez
Malakamez meripides
Hockety pockety wockety

Hockety pockety wockety wack
Odds and ends and bric a brac

Dum goo-dily doo-dily doo-dily dum
This is the best part, now!
Higitus figitus migitus mum
Prestidigitonium
Higitus figitus migitus mum
Prestidigitonium!"

Silly as it sounded, it was his uncle's traveling spell, it reduced things to small size and one bag, anything they needed for their comfort packed away. Though Declan did get called and asshole for having Mushu's dwellings packed too with him still in it.

"Well that's a way to get things in one bag, shall we get to the train?"

He wasn't going to ask more questions, but let Oriana take the lead, yes he put his hand on her butt again, as they'd get out the door, but it would soon resort to holding hands.

"You blockhead, getting my dwelling shrunk and put in the bag...you two, let's mooooove to the top of the Faraway Tree, you don't want to be horribly late."
 
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It was a cheerful and surprisingly upbeat Oriana that clambered to the top of the Faraway Tree. They met a handful of the other residents, they came in all shapes and sizes. Some of them recognized Declan. Others, who were visiting from other towns barely gave them a glance as they tugged their own luggage to the portal doorway. It was a long journey and by the time they reached the top it was ten past eight! Oriana hoped Declan's ankle wouldn't trouble him. Sleeping last night skin to skin would have helped him somewhat.

The jacket around her body was a perfect fit, and Oriana kept one hand clutched into Declan's and the other tucked into the jacket pocket.

A young girl called Frannie met them at the highest branches, Oriana looked around in awe at the clouds peeping through the leaves and breathed in fresh clean air.

"Where will you be heading, today the specialties are the Land of Birthdays, the Land of Goodies, the Land of Take-What-You-Want and the Land of Do-As-You-Please." Frannie told them in a monotone voice, a speech rehearsed many times. "I wouldn't recommend Land of Dame Slap but each to their own."

"What about Diagon Alley?" Oriana queried, she was sure that they could go there today as per the brochure.

"Ah yes, not many opt for that. Supposedly there is a terrorist situation going on there at the moment. Some weirdo Baldymort and his Meth Eaters...don't know, couldn't be bothered to listen to it properly on the news." Frannie shrugged her shoulders, popping a toffee into her mouth and chewing on it hard.

Oriana thought back to the last few days they'd had and shrugged, she doubted it would be a massive issue and Baldymort hardly sounded like an issue. Maybe in such a small area a rough youth with a behavioral problem was a big deal in those parts? "We will still go. I read that we could be there for a month and only a day will pass by here, special time deal. Is that correct?"

Frannie ripped off a ticket and passed it to Declan, "Yup. Get the full package deal today. Go to the shopping area, enroll at Hogwarts and meet some bearded guy, proper famous called Dumbles. I er, Dumbledore." She chewed some more, "Time to go, make sure you return at the correct time. What it says on the back of that ticket. Otherwise you'll be stuck there for a month but it will feel like a year!" The clouds above shifted apart, and she gestured for them to step forward. "Ten seconds to go! On you go and don't forget to return on time, we won't send anyone after you!" She grimaced, "Still waiting on Jo to return from bloody Land of Tempers...just hope she doesn't loose hers. She'll be there forever."
 
Where had Declan heard that name "Dumbledore" before? Mushu on Declan's shoulder also stirred at the sound of the name both seemed puzzled. The sorcerer didn't have time to think too long on it before he was handed their tickets, this Frannie not giving the small red dragon on Declan's shoulder a second thought.

"She reminds me of Carol Channing, especially around the eyes."

"Mushu...let's not get the pitch forks and torches after us okay?"

After stepping through the clouds as advised by Frannie they hurtled towards a large fire place and tumbled out coughing on green powder. Surrounding them were puffs of clouds dissipating away and they all looked up to turning heads and suspicious eyes. Declan figured they'd have to come to this destination when wanting to return to their own realm.



It was a dank and dreary pub they'd arrived in, a bartender was hustling around. Apparently his name was Tom. Oriana asked him how to get into Diagon Alley and he enthusiastically pointed them to the back.



"Pass right through the wall!" Then glanced at some of his customers with his eyebrow quirked. They did stand out in their normal clothes among the people here, wearing strange medieval robes and large pointy hats.



Declan followed Oriana out to the back and stared at the large brick wall, wondering how they could pass through the wall.

A mystical force around them compelled them both to tap on the various bricks, apparently in a password pattern and the bricks moved away to show them Diagon Alley at dusk. Before they stepped forward, Declan slipped a deck of cards into Oriana's back pocket and whispered how to use them. Just in case. If people were like those within the pub they'd just come from, he wouldn't be surprised at a random attack.


Looking at the alley, what would shock a normal human but left him unimpressed. This looked like your classic English shopping alley, but having what they called a 'wizardly' touch. Nothing like Blackhaven when "Halloween Town" came up, but that was only done in even years.

He noticed there was an Owl Emporium, Gringotts Bank for wizards but run by Goblins, something called Flourish and Blotts appeared to sell books, and the last thing that almost made him laugh was a wand shop.

"Ori what is Quality Quidditch Supplies?"

Declan scanned the crowd, the autumn was giving way to winter, while it wasn't raining or snowing; again Declan noted that he and Oriana were not dressed like the others poking about. Some were wearing what looked like school robes, but he noticed scarves with different crests on them, some were wearing the stereotypical wizard hats. Declan couldn't say too much about that, as he had his Uncle's hat back at the Arcana Cabana and one of his own, but the ones being worn here made him turn is head in a questioning manner.

Oriana could probably tell he was a little nervous, he wasn't sure if they knew him or of him here, nor did he know if they knew his Uncle. His hands, or the part of his hands that could be seen with the finger-less gloves were bone white and much like Mushu, Declan's eyes were scanning, not narrowed but scanning as if he was preparing for the worst.

He knew Oriana wanted to try the ice cream, but they needed to solve dinner and where they'd be staying first. Most of the people pushed passed, some looked at Declan as if they were sizing him up, others ignored them, and some gawked at the way they were dressed.

He'd never heard the term 'muggle' before and that was something thrown at them when they got bumped, the look at Oriana while holding on to her was a puzzled one as they pushed through Diagon Alley.
 
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Although Oriana agreed that perhaps Diagon Alley was hyped up too much, she still enjoyed the anonymity here. Yes they didn't fit in but she had no problem in wearing a robe and sticking a pointy hat on. After all, when in Rome...

"I read that they have a sport here, played on speedy brooms. It's called Quidditch." Oriana pondered a bit, then pointed to the bank. "Why don't we go exchange our money for whatever their currency is, and then purchase a broom! We can get a new sibling for the kids back home." By kids she was indicating that the mops and brooms Winston commanded. It would be fun experimenting on them. "Heck, we could even see if they'd be up to playing this game back at home." She knew he was getting wary of the glances they were getting. A tall blonde man, with a serpentine crane bumped into her and sneered.

"Another Weasley?" His silver grey eyes flickered at her red hair and freckled face.

"Oh, erm no. You must have mistaken me for someone else..." Oriana backed away from the man and pulled Declan with her lest they got into an argument. "Declan I think we stand out as foreigners so they may not like us due to that...lets get that money exchanged, and then we can get some clothes from these parts. We need to shop for our enrollment experience at Hogwarts too." Although the bookshop was smaller than the one in Blackhaven, Oriana did wonder if they had any material about her roots.

For the past few days, and even before the situation with Achilles and that disgusting Cyclops Oriana had been wondering back to Excalibur's words to her and what those Nymphs had gotten excited over.

There had to be a reason why she could be with Declan in a physical sense. Not only was she able to heal Declan but she could cause fire explosions that could even kill the likes of Jack the Ripper. This was a scary thought. Having done some studying from the books in Arcana Cabana it was clear to her that there wasn't anyone else like her who balanced healing abilities and commanded a destructive element. It was an anomaly and a contradiction in their world. Yes there were others with certain abilities. Elsa could command snow and ice and Nimue was the literal lady of the lake. She wasn't the only female sorceress and she wasn't as powerful as Declan but with Draconus on her ring her intuition to the magical arts was growing day by day.

Having Mushu around them made her wonder if she would one day have a familiar too.

Oriana shook herself out of these thoughts and grinned at Declan as they made their way up the steps to Gringotts. "Goblins." She told Declan with a large grin, eyeing the rude and miserable creatures staring at them. The building itself was wonky from the outside, and made her feel like it could come crashing down on them any minute however once inside it was well lit and had beautiful architecture. The only daunting thing was the grumpy tellers and staff working the bank and well, the dust and cobwebs. They clearly needed to hire some Winston equivalents.
 
Declan had not been giving much thought to the surroundings, the glances and looks were enough to make him feel as if he needed to be on the defensive, this was not uncommon given the nature of his bloodline, how many times had he been called a demon? Truthfully he lost count, but his father alone helped that rumor go on. As Oriana had noted back at the Halloween Ball, Declan and Merlin resembled each other save a some minor differences, the Dunbroch side didn't show in Declan except for the blue eyes.

He'd heard Oriana's commentary about getting themselves some clothes and something about the asinine game they played on brooms, and well if they were coming away from here with something it would be that broom at her insistence. He followed along, they were very much day and night or the sun and the moon. Mushu was doing his best to coach the sorcerer on not obliterating the goblins and other odd balls here. He'd noted Declan's hand gestures...well...the hand that Oriana didn't have hold of.

Getting their money exchanged would be an interesting experience, this "wizarding bank" as they called it, left Declan wondering what in the world their currency could even be, sure the odd colored money they used in Blackhaven with Kermit the Frog, Mickey Mouse, Goofy, Donald Duck, Miss Piggy, and Fozzy Bear was out there, and his uncle had told him at one time that gold, silver, and copper coins were used, and he never did see his dad pay with any form of paper money or coinage, something told Declan that would be beneath Fergus to do.

He certainly paid no mind to the looks he got with the dragon curled up around his shoulder and neck, but he did note these goblins paid interest into the lovely red-head holding his hand, he knew he was out of his element and the less he said, well he figured the less trouble he'd cause. Oriana did need to learn to take the lead in certain situations, it was part of her training after all, and she seemed to have a better understanding of what they were up against here and was able to talk to the things here as well better than he could, still he could step in as needed, these so called wizards didn't seem to be on par with him or Oriana, they struck him as blatant amateurs.

"What's with this wand thing? I get using a wand that's been enchanted with a certain element or spell, but these people seem to be carrying them around as Jack Sparrow's crew carries those swords."

He was being careful not to say it loudly as Oriana had with the snake man earlier, he was avoiding an incident. But he had to question if he was known here...his uncle was known everywhere and some of the places he had to go to while training left Declan in the spotlight as well by association, this was another cause of Declan's over cautious nature.

"How much did we want to exchange?"
 
Oriana shrugged, "Those who don't receive your level of training may need something to channel their powers through." In this realm it seemed that the population had been in essence, 'dumbed' down by their government. Perhaps their Leader of the 'Light', Dumbledore was behind this. After all, he was the one who was responsible for their education.

Oriana figured they'd find that out once they were at Hogwarts. As disgruntled as their teller was, a miserable bloke called Griphook he managed to assist her. She questioned him on the prices of the best brooms on the market, the clothes and general expenditure for the average witch or wizard entering Hogwarts. At his curt response she winced. Not due to him being rude but more so the fact even here, she was going to have to ask Declan for a lot of money.

It didn't seem like a good idea anymore to visit Diagon Alley. "Erm, we need roughly fifteen thousand...erm, the broom is expensive. We don't have to buy it. But about two thousand for just what we would need to go to Hogwarts and stuff." She shrugged and sighed, "It's fine though, let's forget the broom...just get some ice cream, some books and maybe they'll let us stay at that Pub we came from. We can go home after that..." She tried not to look too dejected, the Goblins wouldn't budge on the currency for Blackhaven since it couldn't be used in any other country or realm. The transfer to Galleons was high.
 
Declan didn't bat an eye at the fifteen thousand these goblins were on about, he had Mushu make the exchange, and pick up extra when the goblins were not looking. Dragons did have a thing for currency after all. Declan was still trying to get bearing on this whacky place it just seemed to him that some of these people took themselves too seriously and others somehow thought magic was more of a game.

That Weasley name got thrown about in the idle chatter, something about some of the family wanting a joke shop, other chatter he kept hearing mentioned something about "he who shall not be named" which made Declan roll his eyes, the way they went on about it was idiotic much like Jack Sparrow back in Blackhaven. Other names didn't mean a thing to him, the asinine commentary about something called "petronis" further made Declan roll his eyes, he'd heard of this parlor trick, there were better protection incantations. This made him really question what we being taught at this Hogwarts.

Still the idea of staying at the pub was of interest the books, that made sense. Declan wanted to see the books more so to see what was being taught, he was sure his own talents willing or unwilling would turn many heads and the last thing he wanted to do was to help these supposed spell casters. It was odd enough for him as this seemed to be a mockery of the arts his uncle trained him in and the question still was what the hell was a 'Muggle'?

He snapped back into attention when Mushu returned to his shoulder area with the extra currency from what they exchanged, Mushu only took a small portion, the rest they had could now cover whatever they needed and Mushu now could conjure more that he knew what the currency was.

"Where are we off to first Ori?"

He was emotionless, he didn't want to give away what Mushu had just pulled off as an f-you to the goblins.
 
Oriana had been worried when Mushu disappeared to collect their money, little did she know that dragons here were a XXXXX creature type.

All she did know was that most of the odd looks directed towards her and Declan, were either due to their clothes and the mini dragon hovering about them. Luckily she had the forethought to whisper an incantation under her breath, it made the locals around them think that the dragon was in fact a rather plump owl.

"Let's go to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions." The outer decoration of the place was painted in a dusty lilac and rather busy. It seemed to be rather popular. Oriana ushered Declan in, with a slight tug and pull of his arm and was greeted with an explicable amount of designs and people.

Among those people, Madam Malkin stood out clearly with her pale face and blue eyes. She was a squat woman dressed all in mauve. Rather friendly to her customers, and she didn't bat an eyelid at either of them thankfully. So luckily, no judgement here.

Oriana decided, this lady here was one of the few people she had met so far that she rather liked.

She waited until a large gaggle of students left with their purchases before requesting a full Hogwarts set of robes for her and Declan.

"Just the one set each...we won't be remaining long. And then may we have two dark green robes please, the simplest design and style will do. I'd prefer hoods for us both. Yes those ones will be perfect, wow- yes they look like our trench coats actually!" Oriana took the initiative since she knew Declan wouldn't be too bothered, it was best to save time rather than dawdle here. "How much is it to have them with a motif?"

"Ten galleons but it won't take long." Madam Malkin produced a book of motif designs, for Oriana to flick through. "Ah, for Declan...can we have this dragon motif? And for me..." She sighed, all up until she got to the last page. It was strange but it was as if she felt some type of affinity to the image before her. "And...I'll have this, this phoenix."

Whilst they waited, Oriana allowed herself to be measured as she had a more hourglass figure and Madam Malkin didn't want to give her something off the rack. It was then that she spotted some clothes for pet animals, smiling impishly she asked for a sweatshirt for a cat to be packaged with the rest of her purchases. A wink was directed towards Mushu. "That's for you. I heard it gets rather drafty up at the castle."

Turning to Declan, she indicated he try on his new green robe and was pleased with the gold threaded embroidered dragon on the collar. "Should go over your day clothes. We'll go to the bookstore next?"
 
Oriana was in the lead here, Declan was scanning and trying to keep a low profile, something about these people made him feel very uncomfortable. This plump lady measuring him for a robe probably found him stiff, but cooperative. The incantation on Mushu hadn't been lost on him at all, his only worry was that Mushu looking like an owl would get him compared to his uncle. True, Archimedes was only one of Merlin's familiars, when one reaches certain circles in the druid order they are able to take on more familiars. In Declan's case, it was only Mushu and that's all he would have, a small green and black dragon with red eyes. Though Mushu liked to turn red in front of Mulan and her crowd.

Mushu opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of it given where they were, and merely stuck his tongue out at Oriana. Mushu was eyeing her curiously as if she had a glow about her but he couldn't pin point it. Declan's mind was still listening in on some of the students, something about a potion making class, gardening class, and what the hell was a defense against the dark arts class?

It was then he snapped to attention with Oriana telling him to try on the robe, he liked the dark green color though he still felt odd wearing this robe, but he understood that it was needed here. He'd heard Oriana on about scarves.

"Ori, what was that about scarves?"

It wasn't that he was trying to avoid paying too much attention, his fear of his own demonic bloodline was driving this, judgement always passed on him, uncle Merlin had been vary vague about what exactly their bloodline was, Geoffrey of Monmouth had said it was demonic, yet the famous person called the Storyteller said they had dragon's blood. Oriana was fire element, Declan was earth, but as the sorcerer he mastered all elements except holy. Oriana would know the bloodline after their romp the night before...

Declan put the currency down for the robes, Mushu would ensure they'd have more with his tricks but not from this place, he'd get it elsewhere and put it in Oriana's pocket then Declan's to throw off suspicion. If he got caught, well then the force of a dragon would be brought down and he'd get it anyways...this Declan hoped to avoid.

Oriana had taken him by the hand to the bookstore, this would be interesting for Declan, aside from trying to get information, he could actually see what in the hell these so call wizards were learning or least get an idea.

"Ori, what in the world is a defense against the dark arts class? I know what potion making is and gardening, but defense against the dark arts?"

Declan sent Mushu off to get something for him to eat, he was still feeling weak from the use of blood magic, and a little sore from the "fun" he and Oriana had had the night before. He even checked his ankle wrap to make sure one it didn't stand out, and two to make wearing the loafers more bearable.

The bookshop to him was strange, nothing like the tomes at the Arcana Cabana or even the normal books they housed there, he'd noted that Oriana's collection there was getting bigger, mostly due to Mushu hearing her desire for books. He ran his fingers on the spines of some of the books, but he didn't want to stray too far from Oriana, hopefully she was not sensing his tension or even the internal battle he was having with the bloodline (another side effect of blood magic).

He was paler that normal still, was this getting attention? He didn't know, but he could hear the name Malfoy getting tossed about as well as Weasley...
 
As they'd left to go to the bookstore, Oriana had been taken by surprise. Madam Malkin had patted her stomach, remarking that her robe had been designed to flair out and not to worry about how much material was available in it.

Oriana had simply blinked at her befuddled and led Declan out the shop, her one hand swinging with a bag of their purchases. When they got inside the bookstore she had pulled out her new robe and yanked it on. The gold phoenix glittered away at all who spotted it. Declan had continued wearing his from when she had made him try it on.

Am I looking fat? Does she think I'm going to gain weight at Hogwarts? Well they do say the Elves there make remarkable food... I better not tell Winston about that. He would stop feeding me for sure.

She was deep in thought when Declan was asking her questions, "D-defense? Against Dark Arts? I guess people here are under the assumption that magic itself can be light and dark. All spells can be used to function as defense or attack, but here they like to classify everything." Oriana shrugged, it was mostly picked up on observation but judging by the chapters in Standard Books of Spells that was what was taught here.

Whilst she was mooching around, her eyes fell on a very dusty shelf that had clearly not been visited for some time. There was one particular tome that stood out to her, battered and the hard cover was peeling away. The title of it had nearly faded with time too. "F-...Fènghuáng jiāzú"

It took her a while, turning the pages until it clicked. "The Phoenix Family? As in, this is about birds?" She looked down at the motif on her new robe and grinned. "Well, might as well." And added it to the pile Mushu was already steadily building. Something about the book had pulled her to its side and it would require Declans help to translate it. Since their first kiss, and the visions it was getting easier to handle foreign languages but it would take time for her to be fluent.

"Shall we go to Ollivander's? We don't need wands but it may stop us from looking like complete outsiders."
 
Mushu again made the purchases for books, though some of the coins he'd managed to get back. Declan hadn't noticed on purpose, he was merely trying to get a grasp on this odd place, dark arts? He doubted seriously as he flipped through some of the pages of one of the tomes that they actually knew what the dark arts were...necromancy was a dark art, so was shadow magic. No mention of that was in these books.

One of the books confirmed what Oriana had told him about dragons, Declan was confused about it too, and Mushu's jaw hit the floor.

"Hey Dec, c'mon now, that's a load of bullshit!"

"I know it is, you know damn well you can't speak here...these people's familiars don't actually talk..."

Declan had noticed a strange variety of familiars, fat cats, lizards, snakes, various birds (exotic and normal). And now a new name joined the Malfoy, Weasley, Granger list, Potter. There was some commotion about it that Declan didn't understand, it was like these people were speaking as if Achilles or Hercules or Jason and his Argonauts had appeared.

Still he and Oriana had arrived at the wand shop, Declan silently looked over these wands. Sure he'd seen wands and even had a selection of them back at the Arcana Cabana, but from what he was hearing this was how these "wizards" cast their spells and the like. He'd known wands such as the Faerie Godmother's that could transform objects, that was the nature of faerie magic, the only faerie that could do magic without a wand was Titania, and he'd only met her once with his uncle, it was some business to do with sirens invading her lakes that were around Avalon.

He know that Elven magic was more natural in use, there was a story some of the elves in Blackhaven told about some ring and how an elf named Elrond had assisted in putting an end to it, or those elves that helped an old shoe maker.

Still Oriana was right they needed to complete the illusion without magic, and just fit in as best they could, Declan didn't care too much about what wood and how his wand was, but the Red Oak interested him, however as he was quickly to learn here, the wand chooses it's wielder.

The English Oak wand reacted to Declan as it was something familiar to that wood, but it was not a strong reaction, but it did not escape Olivander's notice.

"There's something about you boy, that seems familiar, that English Oak won't do for you, but it does react, so does Cypress there's something about you that says nobility, but I don't see you dying a heroic death, though you are willing. Ah! Black Walnut with the dragon heartstring, something tells me that you'll master this wand, as it calls to you."

Declan took the wand in his hand and studied it, black walnut, with a dragon heartstring, hopefully he'd not offend Mushu, if this really even was a dragon heart string. Still they had to crack on and act the part, he'd need to remember to tell his uncle about this as well.

He was mildly curious about this wand choosing him, but he'd hold his tongue until Oriana had her wand and they could figure this out together. That Malfoy name again came up, something about winning a wand from another student, this was proving to be interesting fodder, winning wands now.

At minimum Declan had a souvenir for their time here, maybe Oriana would make a scrap book of this he laughed to himself. Either way he was interested in seeing what wand chose Oriana.
 
Whilst Declan had been getting matched up with his wand, Oriana had taken the time to wander around the shop much to Ollivander's displeasure.

Ollivander seemed to be very protective of the wands and had a quirky personality. Also very finicky about what she touched - not that she could blame him, some wand boxes shifted away from her or slid across the counters as if they were afraid of being incinerated. Still, she persisted and hovered her hands over the various boxes piled up haphazardly on the creaking shelves. She'd looked back when a wand had finally chosen Declan and wasn't surprised at the Dragon heartstring. She flicked open a nearby book on Wandlore and grinned at the blurb.

Wandlore is an ancient, complex, and mysterious branch of magic dealing with the history, abilities, and actions of wands, quasi-sentient magical tools used by wizards and witches to cast spells.

Oriana put the book away and went back to Declan's side, whispering to him what she'd learned. "Not a common wand as they're not easily mastered. Walnut seeks a master of good instincts and powerful insight. It has one pronounced quirk, which is that it is abnormally attuned to inner conflict, and loses power dramatically if its possessor practises any form of self-deception. If the witch or wizard is unable or unwilling to be honest with themselves or others, the wand often fails to perform adequately and must be matched with a new owner if it is to regain its former prowess. Paired with a sincere, self-aware owner, however, it becomes one of the most loyal and impressive wands of all, with a particular flair in all kinds of charmwork." She reeled off from memory, "Not that you need it anyway." An annoyed cough from Ollivander forced her to take a serious look at her wand options.

Oriana tempted to use a few wands that were presented to her, but at the first swish and flick two started burning at the tip and Ollivander hastily cast Augementi to save them. "A tricky customer I see. Not to worry, not to worry!"

After a long tedious hour the poor man placed a very dusty, and what seemed to her ancient box in front of her. His eyes now seemed curious and seemed to be searching her face for some answer to a great myster as she opened the box. It had an oriental design and some inscriptions that she was more interesting in getting Declan to help her decipher, but now wasn't the time. The wand was apparently made out of Cherry.

Ollivander whispered to them, "This very rare wand wood creates a wand of strange power, most highly prized by the wizarding students of the school of Mahoutokoro in Japan, where those who own cherry wands have special prestige. The Western wand-purchaser should dispel from their minds any notion that the pink blossom of the living tree makes for a frivolous or merely ornamental wand, for cherry wood often makes a wand that possesses truly lethal power, whatever the core, but if teamed with dragon heartstring, the wand ought never to be teamed with a wizard without exceptional self-control and strength of mind."

Oriana blinked up him, "What's in my wand?"

"Not dragon heartstring...one of you today is enough. No...you are destined for much more. Your wand core is of the rarest type. Phoenix feathers are capable of the greatest range of magic, though they may take longer than either unicorn or dragon cores to reveal this. They show the most initiative, sometimes acting of their own accord, a quality that many witches and wizards dislike. Phoenix feather wands are always the pickiest when it comes to potential owners, for the creature from which they are taken is one of the most independent and detached in the world. These wands are the hardest to tame and to personalise, and their allegiance is usually hard won..."

Oriana placed her new wand box and wand, (surprised at how heavy it was) in to her bag. She didn't want to take any of this wandlore seriously. She too felt it was just a good souvenir but Ollivander was starting to freak her out a bit. It was as if he was trying to give her a clue about something. Mushu dropped the galleons onto the counter and with a polite nod at the elderly man, and ignoring his bright eyes which seemed to be making an attempt to peer into her soul right now she nudged Declan outside. "Well....that wasn't weird at all."

It was getting a bit dark now, the sun was setting and Oriana knew they should rest for the evening at the pub they came from and in the morning make their way to Hogwarts. "I'm tired now...should we go have some food and rest? We can travel by floo or train tomorrow for Hogsmeade." She tightened her cloak around her body. "I feel really lethargic now anyway." It was as if that whole experience with Ollivander had zapped all her strength.
 
"I've never bought into all that wand lore either, sure we used them, but they weren't custom made or attached to the user. For me at least this will be a souvenir from this visit. But I wonder why they put so much on these wands, and why it was so difficult for us to 'get chosen'."

He was not impressed by the wand shop or the names he'd been hearing, some sounded dangerous others just asinine to him. He didn't understand this fear of dragons in this place at all, true they were creatures to be scared of, but most dragons had no interest in the affairs of what people did, though there were some exceptions such as red, blue, black, white, and yellow dragons. The copper, silver, gold, and platinum dragons were the ones that had no interest in messing in people's lives, they gave advice and were worshiped in some circles.

Declan agreed with Oriana, he'd had enough for one day, the looks he was getting, the names, the general discomfort he was feeling was enough to want something to eat and call it a night.

"Yes, I think I've restrained myself enough for one day, I could do with something to eat and a rest for the night. Hot bath would an added bonus"

He was still feeling the effects of their battle with Achilles, Polyphemus the cyclops, and the hydra; his ankle was still tender though. The hole shot in it had stopped bleeding and now had taken on the look of a bruise yet the hole had been slower in healing and Declan was still wrapping it as if it was still bleeding. Too much time on their feet was taking a toll and he was more on edge than his usual calm.

"Ori, do you have any idea who these Malfoy people I keep hearing about are? I am also hearing about some Weasley and Granger as people of interest here."

Mushsu was restless, Declan's pain could be felt by the dragon, though it didn't harm Mushu, they were linked after all, familiars were not like pets. They were chosen or chose their masters, in Mushu's case he was similar to how Etrigan was bound to Merlin. Both were dragons, but of different colors, true they were not metallic colored but large dragons never were meant to be familiars. Besides, Etrigan and Mushu had powers beyond what the large dragons possessed.

"Ori, this is crazy, how much longer do I need to look like an owl? I mean look at Declan, does he really look like an owl person? I mean come on!"

Declan didn't comment, he was too busy limping to the pub and getting strange looks for asking for a room that would indicate they were royal or well off. Declan had his fair share of sleeping in places he disliked, it was time to be comfortable. Both he and Mushu were starving and if Declan was going to eat in a pub, he was going to have some pub food damn it, it was the least that could be done given the strange day they'd had.

Mushu as they sat down, after Declan arrange for a nice room, and began looking over Declan's wand. The dragon was not surprised that there was some conflict with the wands choosing him, had Declan not had the blood flowing through his veins that he did, he might have had a Cypress wand after all he was willing to die the heroic death doing those labors, but Oriana had changed things. However the Black Walnut was of interest, especially what Oriana had said, Declan wasn't a dishonest person as Mushu knew him better than anyone, the sorcerer was going to give the wand an honor of being on display in the Arcana Cabana.

If Oriana was looking close at Declan she'd notice he was still battling the soreness in his ankle, he was trying to pay her attention too, but as he always did he was trying to get information on the people they'd have to deal with here in Hogwart's.
 
"As long as we are in this realm, you will remain as an Owl or a similar bird like creature. Do not dress up as a Robin. We will shoot to kill. Or you can turn into a chameleon or invisible." Oriana had been rummaging through her belongings to find some red tiger balm, and once she had the little glass bottle in her hand she approached Declan silently pulling his ankle into her lap and sitting cross legged on the floor. She slathered a good amount of the balm across his ankle and began a gentle rub, her inner healing ability seeping into his skin to speed up the process. There was no point asking him if it still hurt, he would probably pretend it didn't and ask her to relax.

"I picked up one of their newspapers." She nodded to the table where she had dumped the trash read called Daily Prophet, a woman called Rita Skeeter was splashed all over it and hogged majority of the columns. Her writing style was absolutely awful but Oriana sensed that the people here lapped it up. She'd read a few articles on their walk to the pub and whilst Declan dealt with their room booking and food arrangement. "I wouldn't say read it though...you'd probably burn it. I got a very Alice vibe from one of the so called journalists. Anyways...they are Hogwarts obsessed. One private school and they're all gaga over it. Malfoy's are a rich pure blood family. They hold a lot of sway over the Government here. Weasley's are a poorer middle class family...well known for their red hair. That's why that man confused me and was looking down at me. And Granger...just reading the test scores, she comes first in most subjects and one of the teachers...McGonagall has been quoted saying she's the brightest witch of her age. Granger wasn't in that book of genealogy I picked up though. So must be a Muggleborn. So a pureblood is someone born from a long line of wizards and witches. A muggleborn is someone who is born to non magical parents." Oriana shrugged, "This place is rife with discrimination and weird archaic laws." They weren't here to change the laws though.

Oriana got up to wash her hands, rinsing the stink of that balm off her palms. She hadn't bothered to bandage his leg yet, knowing he'd be clamoring for a long hot bath before sleeping. She withheld a yawn. "I've ran the bath and thrown some salts in...I'm going to eat and sleep though, so get in there and I'll keep your food heated when it arrives." She could control that more easily now with her ring. Whilst she was in the bathroom, a silent pop had sounded in the room and the appearance of what she called 'pub grub' on the table. Her eyes had caught the flash of some pointy ears but just as quickly as the food appeared, there was another 'pop' signally someone had now left their room and disappeared as quickly as they came. "Odd."
 
Pureblood, Muggle? What in hell was wrong with this place? Declan thought. Oriana was right this place was full of arcahiac laws and discrimination.

"This begs the question of what we'd be considered in this muggle and pureblood nonsense. I mean I have been getting odd looks since we got here, you know those ones that people think I look familar or something. That would explain that asking you if you were a Weasley question, I heard something about joke shop, but that damn wand shop owner interrupted my listening in on that."

He shook his head and made a comment about this Granger being an over achiever, likening her to an ass kisser. Mushu meanwhile begged Oriana to change him to a bird of prey, complaining of this stupid owl called Hedwig hitting on him.

Declan was being cautious about his use of illusions here, strong magic he figured would draw unwanted attention.

"These Malfoy's sound like trouble and need to be taken down a couple of notches. But I am getting sick of hearing about this Harry Potter, they make him sound as if he's a god or something. Mushu...feel like stretching your wings? After Oriana turns you into a hawk or eagle, you can get me some information on this Harry Potter."

Declan ignored the popping noise and the pointed ears, he was sore, hungry, and exhausted. They still had to visit the rest of this place in the morning, but he was bound and determined to soak after eating, the last thing he wanted was the pain to hinder their disguise here, while the Addams' were friendly to him he knew how to handle their quirks such as Gomez's fondness for dueling or Festers experiments, this was a place that magic was used and he was not sure what kind of magic, given there was a school...people that didn't know how to use it properly.

He'd heard one of the people mutter something that shook him to the core, a phrase "Merlin's beard".

His uncle did not have a beard...
 
Oriana had turned Mushu into a Falcon before falling asleep, a black one with a streak of red across his wings. Her belly had been filled with fish and chips, drowned with a large glass of firewhisky. It had made her tipsy enough to fall asleep before Declan got out of his bath but she had woken up with her arms and legs wrapped around him nonetheless.

They'd left a lot later than the other children running around Diagon Alley for their last minute school essentials and heading for the train at Kings Cross so early in the morning, the floo took a lot less time but apparently the parents here were stickler for 'tradition'. It gave them more time to pack their belongings, for her to straighten her naturally curly hair so it fell a lot more smoothly down her back and Oriana had even applied makeup. It was all part of the school experience to her. It took some encouragement on her part to get Declan into his 'school uniform' and robes. They'd had another hearty meal around midday and read up some more about this Harry Potter and what had happened in the last ten years of this place.

The history wasn't pretty and more than once, both her and Declan had commented on the stupidity of the government here and Dumbledore.

They'd decided on the Floo as their method to reach Hogwarts. Oriana hadn't been particularly interested in joining the giggling mass of hormonal girls on the train. So upon one of the bartenders advice at the pub they'd stayed at, they took the floo around early evening to a town nearby Hogwarts. Once again, they were covered in soot but a quick gesture of Declan's hand had them clean in no time.

They didn't have much time to browse Hogsmeade as much as she'd like, it was a lot calmer here than Diagon Alley. Still, she'd managed to buy a Blood Pop from the sweets shop before their walk up to Hogwarts. She was worried about Declan's ankle, so kept shooting some heated pain relief fire bells at his feet to stop the cold from affecting how sore it was.

As they walked, Oriana flicked through a large tome called Hogwarts - A History. The castle itself was located in the Scottish Highlands. It was said to be a sentient building, due to its age and the constant infusion of magic. It had to be said that the landscape on which it was situated was absolutely beautiful to her. The valley area, surrounding mountains and the Great Lake made it seem so peaceful. As they walked past said lake, a humongous squid flashed one of it's tentacles at her and she grinned. Oriana waved back enthusiastically and put the tome away into her backpack as they reached some large oak doors. The sun was setting and judging by her watch, the other children would arrive in about ten minutes or so.

The oak doors creaked open for them and taking Declan's hand, she stepped into the castle and instantly took a deep breath in. It was a bit of a shock to have the castle thrum around them, as if it was adjusting its energy fields to accommodate them. She got the vibe that the castle was excited at their entry, like a dog wagging it's tail. "Interesting." She whispered to Declan.
 
Declan again got a shock, he was originally from the Scottish Highlands, so this castle being here all this time shook him to the core, surely his uncle would have mentioned it during training. The squid he didn't recognize either, the dragon called Nessie by the locals rested beneath Loch Ness, it was a guardian of sorts, granted the family estate was in Aberdeen and Declan had constantly had to go to Orkney to meet with the council. He found this hard to believe they'd allow a place like this to exist, especially with the incompetent governing and whoever this Dumbledore was.

He'd be making a complaint, demand, or threat to have this moved out of his native Scottish Highlands, if he had to do it himself...this sort of thing belonged in England or maybe Wales.

Tension was high for him entering the castle, he was quelling the dragon rage rising in him, possibly Nessie could sense this, this was a violation to him. The cold and pain of his ankle was now in the back of his mind once he found out this dreaded place was in Scotland, for once he found himself agreeing with his father, but more on the lines that places like this should exist, but not here...not in his native land.

The students milling about and the history of the place annoyed him, a person who was tense already had just been sent to full on hostile. If this were schooling, Declan would be the brooding kid that was bored with school as this was not challenging to him, Oriana could feel his rage while holding his hand.

"This won't stand..."

Was all he could mutter, he was controlled rage now, and trying to figure out how not to have Mushu raze this place to the ground and have it sent as far out of Scotland it could be sent. It sure didn't need to be in Blackhaven, right now he was willing to send it to Sibera...before he began to focus in. Mushu could sense this, and knew full well that he'd need Etrigan and Merlin to assist in what Declan was thinking, Avalon probably didn't know about this...if they had...there'd be consequences...he would see to it, this was going brick by brick to England...

Parlor tricks welcomed them, candles floating on their own, ghosts dancing about, portraits coming to life...Declan's left hand tensed he was fighting the rage inside him, Mushu would meet them later after he finished his task about Potter and told Merlin about this abomination in Scotland.

True Merlin was Welsh and had moved to Scotland after the fall of Camelot, but the council at Avalon would not have permitted this place on soil the druids owned. Clearly this Dumbledore violated some of the laws, as the sorcerer could sense the banshees here at Hogwarts were pissed.

The glare Declan had if one looked close was that of green dragon, calm, but ready to reek havoc at the first opportunity...while not a druid himself, Declan could sense creatures the druids knew: dryads, centaurs, unicorns, and leprechauns (the ones native to Scotland were both pixie sized and dwarf sized) all seemed to know Hogwarts should not be here...not in druid territory.

Oriana was having difficulty with getting Declan to wear his robes...but now she was going to have to work overtime to keep him from tearing this place down singlehandily brick by brick and instructor by instructor. She was going to have to trust Mushu in making this right...especially by getting Declan's uncle and the high council on Orkney involved.

The rage was there when something called sorting being called on...
 
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Oriana had to wince, he was squeezing he hand so tightly and his anger was palpable. In all honesty it was ruining her experience, she didn't have the same connection to the Scottish land and found it hard to make any connection. She who walked around with no heritage to speak of or a family background, such anger was actually a privilege to her.

She wasn't to bothered by the candles, ghosts or the talking portraits. It was a bit creepy to have a poltergeist suddenly appear in front of them, his see through body clearly showing his excitement and whizzing around them in a cackle. Then it gave a sudden bow and looked at the angry Declan and her dead in the eye with a cheerful grin. "Ah - hello..." She muttered, the other ghosts hadn't given them as much attention.

She had an inkling this was the poltergeist called Peeves, mentioned in Hogwarts - A History as an apparition which had 'come with the building' so presumably was connected to the land. He swept his belled hat from his head and sprang to a salute as they walked past and sped out of the open front doors into the darkening sky.

The other students were lining up behind them, but Oriana tugged Declan into a corner whilst the newly arrived Professor McGonagall counted up the students and matched them with a piece of parchment in her hand. "Hey, you need to calm down. I'm not doing this if you're going to walk around with that face on and stop hurting my hand." She wrung it out of his grip and folded her arms, a scowl forming on her face.

The walk to Hogwarts had made her tired again but she wasn't going to give up a life long dream because Declan had 'one on him'. "I know something is ticking you off about this place, you weren't happy about Diagon Alley either. No I don't want to know the reason so don't start ranting at me about this place!" She placed a finger on his lips, "We are just classed as temporary transfer students here, I want to have some silly lessons and get told off by a teacher and be forced to do some kid of physical education program that I'd rather skip class for, I want to get detention and maybe have some meaningless conversation with a group of mindless girls..." She breathed in sadly, "I want to know what every other kid knew and I never got a chance to. So if that's a problem, and we can't do that. Then tell me now, so we can go back to some dingy pub and spend a month lounging there rather than ruining this all for me. Or you go back alone and I'll stay here by myself, but non of this anger thing. I'm not having it."

She pushed her hair back and pursed her lips. It wasn't as if they could return to Blackhaven any sooner, their ticket was for a months time. "Am I clear?" If Merida was here, she would have been standing gawping at the redhead giving the Sorcerer of Blackhaven a full on dressing down. It was nowhere near what she had done to Mayor Snow White however and paled in comparison.
 
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