Professor Black: A Reader Insert

39. Of Dragons and Balls

The day of the first task arrived, Barty jr. sat in the far corner of the champion's tent with a disillusioned weight against his legs muttering the 'spell' and practicing the wand movement that would 'summon' Miss Black's animagus posing as his familiar. It was an actual spell, but instead of summoning one's familiar it would banish it and send it on to the next suitable person to bond with, it does nothing if the wixen casting it has no familiar. Barty didn't so it should only give off sparks.

He had been unlucky and had gotten the Horntail much to his displeasure so he waited and waited as patiently as one can when the weight against his leg removed itself and the announcement for the final champion played through the air. With a resigned sigh he stepped over to the tent opening and stepped out into the arena. The dragon watched him as if it already knew that he wasn't worth fighting.

"Weccan Ednîwe." He said clearly as he waved his wand in the right movement and watched as the dire disillusioned herself mid-leap as his wand sparked off.

He watched as she opened her mouth like she was yawning and gave him a look to which he motioned to the dragon who looked amused by this. She huffed indignantly and faced the dragon sat on her fluffy rump and opened her mouth again and hissed to the dragon. Said dragon hissed back while looking at the clutch of eggs she was guarding as if in thought. Miss Black hissed again her tail thumping on the ground behind her and the dragon shifted her eggs carefully so that the golden egg can be removed with ease.

The dire stood and caught the egg that flew out of the nest like it had been summoned before nodding to the dragon and depositing the egg into the waiting hands of the champion who looked bored. The dire then shrank down as she walked around a rock and disillusioned herself again. 

Barty didn't waste any time and left the arena ignoring his score as he entered the medical tent and asked if there was anything he could do to help. Then he simply told the other champions to open the egg underwater and then allowed for a binding band to be placed back on his wrist.

~~~~~

Albus Dumbledore felt there was something off about the spell that Barty Crouch Jr. had used that afternoon, so that evening after students, staff, and guests had wandered off to bed he tried it himself. Repeating the incantation and the wand movement perfectly. Instead of the expected sparks and appearance of Fawkes, a golden beam shot from his wand and a phoenix cry filled the room followed by the most unimaginable pain as his magical core was being ripped apart. The old man couldn't take it and passed out just before a Peeves wandered in wondering about the ruckus all of that had caused.

~~~~~

Fawkes remembered a time when his familiar was a good man, unclouded by greed and silly notions of the greater good. He remembers the wonder he'd look at the world with that had one day disappeared and was replaced by that damn twinkling in his eyes. The first time he'd met the next bond he'd have, she was hiding from her schoolmates to avoid the contempt they'd send her away. He always set Peeves on the ones who'd make her cry, but it didn't do much. He was mourning as he had watched his next be forced to give up her rights to him before she had been sent away with a man that felt all wrong. But something snapped him out of his funk, he could feel her again. With a joyous cry, he flashed out of the headmaster's office and straight to her. To his rightfully bonded. His heart felt like it was going to burst as he watched her sleep so peacefully as he roosted above her head rubbing his cheek against hers as he did when he found her crying when she was still in school. And he felt the bond snap into place, setting him at peace as he snuggled into her side and dreamed of a better tomorrow.

~~~~~

Poppy had just put the wards in place to let her know if she were needed when a pale Filch stumbled into the hospital wing.