Hogwarts: A Hope Through Time (Book 1)

Chapter 38

Daphne and Hope made their laps around the Black Lake early in the morning after the Weighing of the Wands. The student body wasn't yet aware of Hope's new status within the hierarchy as she didn't flaunt her Head of House ring like a certain peacock she knew, she still preferred to stay on the down-low.
A loud roar stopped Daphne in her tracks as she looked out towards the Forbidden Forest with a hint of fear in her eyes before turning back to look at Hope. "Are you sure about this?"
Hope frowned as she looked out into the forest as well but before she answered, there was a gallop of hooves that drew the girls attention to the tree line.
The Centaur Herdmaster, Nunki, rounded the remaining trees before coming out to stand warily at the border.
"Please tell me that those Dragons have nothing to do with you." Was his greeting to the young Alpha.
Hope tossed her head to the side in partial disagreement but also regretful admittance, "Technically they are here for the Tri-Wizard Tournament. However I am a Champion, so I will be facing one of those Dragons next week on the 24th of November."
"Dear Methuselah, have mercy on you." Nunki murmured to himself and to Hope.

Hope frowned as she thought back to her Astronomy lessons, trying to recall where she heard the name Methuselah before but Daphne figured it out first. "That's the oldest star in our Solar System...Uh, I think it's about 14.5 billions years old?"
"Very close young one. Methuselah is the name that we use in place of God, as we are creatures of the stars, it is 14.3 billion years old, nearly double the age of the Earth and is located between two of the Zodiac signs, Scorpio and Libra, however it is located closer to Libra than anything else." Nunki explained.
"I have to admit, I didn't know that Nunki. Thank you for enlightening me. By any chance are you able to tell me the types of Dragons they are keeping in the Forest?" Hope requested from the other leader with great respect as she didn't want to piss off a potential ally.

The Herdmaster gave a respectful nod. "Of course. I see no reason to deny you this information, afterall you could just simply go into the woods to learn the species for yourself. The Dragons being held in the Forest are: The Common Welsh Green, A Swedish Short-Snout, A Chinese Fireball and A Hungarian Horntail. However I think the Hungarian Horntail is distraught that her eggs were taken away."
Daphne groaned at the wording the Centaur gave them.
"Great... Mothering Dragons. That's just perfect." The blonde murmured in annoyance before giving a small glare at Hope for not informing her of this information.
Hope pursed her lips together as she felt the anger coming from her Mate, she forgot to mention that to her girlfriend that the Dragons were nesting mothers.

Hope mouthed, 'Sorry' to her Mate with a sheepish look on her face before turning back to the other leader of the Forest.
"Thank you Nunki. For the information. The Dragons should be gone by the end of next week. I apologise for any inconveniences that the Dragons cause. I'll get my aunt to provide more protections for the area and I'll ask King Ragnok to send some Goblins to put up some Wards around the site. Maybe I'll put this ring to some good use." Hope mentioned as she showed the Herdmaster her Emrys ring.
"I had a feeling you would cause waves. But I didn't expect the waves to turn into a tsunami. Be careful with the power you hold. Absolute power can corrupt even the purest soul."
"I know. That's why I've surrounded myself with people that care about me. But I thank you for the warning." Hope replied gratefully to the other Magical Creature.
Nunki gave a subtle nod which Hope and Daphne returned before Nunki trotted back into the Forbidden Forest.

"You are so lucky I can't smack you right now for being an idiot." Daphne remarked with a displeased expression as she started to run off again to finish her lap.
Hope groaned at her absentmindedness before she took off to catch up to the blonde witch, "Look love, I'm sorry." Hope apologised to the beautiful blonde woman that held her heart.
"I literally forgot that the Dragons were nesting mothers. I was only concerned about grabbing the Golden Egg for the next Task. I forgot the reason why they were using Golden Eggs... " A thought just occurred to Hope, "Hmm... I really should do something about protecting the real eggs from being destroyed." Daphne looked over to Hope shocked.
"That's a potential issue?!" The blonde cried out in worry.
"A Mothering Dragon is bad enough. Having a distraught Dragon who lost her clutch is worse." Daphne looked over to Hope.
"Do you have a plan?"
"Uh... Technically not at the moment. Not without changing the Task dramatically. If I mention it now, they will either get new creatures to fight or legitimately torture the Dragon before setting it loose on the contestants."
"Okay... Bad plan. Next?" Daphne discerned with a quick shake of her head.
Hope thought about it for a moment. "I could have Freya perform a discreet swap?"
The blonde looked thoughtful at that suggestion. "That seems plausible. If anyone figures it out, perhaps she could mention that she is acting as Slytherin Protector's left hand. Like both of you have mentioned, you're not bound to protecting Slytherins only. Maybe Dragon Eggs could be classified as creatures that require protection?"
Hope gave a semi-nod of her head. "It sounds like a decent idea. Let's see what Freya thinks before committing to it."

The girls eventually completed their laps, although later than they normally would as they walked through the outdoor courtyard, with some students from all three schools out and about covered in layers upon layers of heavy clothing in the cold morning air.
There was a sound of running footsteps coming from her right and she saw Harry running up to her, but before he could reach them Hope smelt a potent lustful scent coming from behind her.
Fleur tapped on Hope's shoulder to gain her attention, Harry finally reached the other Tri-Wizard Champion and the two other competitors both urgently said, "Hope! I need to speak to you! It's important!" That was Harry. "Hope. I'm afraid I have troubling news to give you." Came from Fleur.
Daphne looked between the two other Champions in amazement before noticing the stares they were receiving.
"Uh, Hope? Perhaps we should take this conversation elsewhere? We're attracting an audience." The blonde stated, causing the other three students to look out to the courtyard, to see the curious gazes but some of the students looked away.

Hope blinked. "Well... That's not something you see everyday." Hope muttered before she made a motion with her hand.