The icy air was already beginning to seep through the stone corridors of the castle, announcing that the first test of the Tournament was literally just around the corner.
Aurelian left the Transfiguration classroom with his backpack slung over his shoulder, flanked as always by Hestia and Flora. They had just finished a curious and complex lesson on partial human transmutation. That day, Professor McGonagall had been especially attentive to ensure that none of her students made any mistakes, leaving most of them with headaches. Aurelian looked as fresh as a lettuce; it had been an interesting class.
Unfortunately, his calm was interrupted by a whirlwind dressed in a yellow and black robe.
"Aurelian!" cried a breathless voice.
Cedric Diggory came running toward them, stopping just in time to avoid a collision. The Hogwarts Champion looked haggard, his brown hair disheveled and a palpable anxiety on his face replacing his usual calm confidence.
"Cedric," Aurelian greeted him, stopping. "You look terrible. Is the stress of being champion finally taking its toll?" he asked amusedly.
Cedric glanced around, making sure there were no teachers nearby, then looked at Aurelian with pleading eyes.
"I need your help. I know you know, please tell me," said Cedric, clasping his hands together in an almost prayerful gesture. "I'm sure Headmistress Maxime knows and told Fleur. Karkaroff knows too and told Viktor. Even Potter seems to know something. I'm the only one in the dark here. Please tell me," he repeated. "I know you know what the first task is about."
Behind Aurelian, Hestia and Flora exchanged glances and covered their mouths with their hands, trying to stifle cruel giggles at the sight of the "Hogwarts Champion" begging for information.
Aurelian sighed, he already sensed that Cedric would come looking for him sooner or later.
A small smile curved his lips. "You're right, Cedric. I know."
The relief on Cedric's face was immediate.
"I knew I could count on you," he exhaled. "You're the only one who knows everything in this castle."
"But not here," Aurelian said quietly.
He nodded and led Cedric (and her shadows) to a little-used side corridor, hidden behind a tapestry. Once they were completely alone, Aurelian crossed his arms and looked his friend in the eyes.
"Dragons," he said simply.
Cedric froze. The color drained from his face so quickly that he looked like a ghost.
"Dra... dragons?" he repeated in a whisper. "Plural?"
"As far as I know. Four, to be exact. One for each champion," Aurelian explained calmly. "Your goal will be to outwit them to get... a golden egg. You don't have to kill them, you just have to retrieve the egg."
Cedric ran a hand over his face, taking in the news. His initial panic slowly gave way to resignation and then determination. Knowing the enemy he would face was better than fighting against uncertainty.
"Dragons... okay. Okay," Cedric muttered, straightening up. "I can work with that. Some transformations... and distraction spells... yes, I know I can do it."
Aurelian watched him for a moment.
"Do you want me to help you prepare a strategy?" he offered. "I know a couple of spells that could pierce their scales or confuse them."
Cedric looked up and shook his head firmly.
"No," he said bravely. "You've already done enough by telling me this. If I want to win, I have to do it myself, Aurelian. I have to prove that I deserve to be there and be the champion."
In a burst of emotion, Cedric stepped forward and grabbed Aurelian's shoulders tightly, shaking him slightly in gratitude.
"Thank you, really. You saved my life."
The moment Cedric's hands touched Aurelian, the temperature in the hallway seemed to drop ten degrees.
Aurelian noticed Hestia and Flora, who were behind him, narrowing their eyes. Their gazes were fixed on Cedric's hands as if they were lasers targeting a target to be eliminated. A silent, murderous aura emanated from them: "Take your hands off our betrothed"
Cedric, who had a keen survival instinct developed over the years, sensed the danger on his forehead. He looked over Aurelian's shoulder, saw the girls' faces, and let go of his friend as if he were burning.
"Uh... well," said Cedric, taking a step back and smiling nervously, "I'd better go to the library. I have a lot of research to do. See you guys!"
Cedric turned and ran away, disappearing from view at the end of the hallway.
Aurelian turned to the girls, raising an eyebrow.
"Did you have to scare him so much?"
"He touched what wasn't his," said Flora indifferently, smoothing her skirt.
"You give them too much confidence," added Hestia.
A moment later, Hestia looked in the direction the badger had gone.
"Do you think he can do it?" she asked. "Will he survive a dragon?"
Aurelian nodded confidently.
"Cedric is skilled. He's the best wizard of his age at the school. With the right information, I'm sure he'll do well."
"Mmm," they both said, shrugging their shoulders with complete indifference. Cedric Diggory's survival was not on their list of priorities.
"Whatever," said Flora, hooking her arm through Aurelian's right arm. "I'm hungry."
"Let's go to the Great Hall," added Hestia, taking his left arm. "There's stew today, and I don't want to miss it."
Aurelian let himself be dragged along by his betrotheds, smiling as they headed for lunch, leaving Cedric's fate in his own hands... at least for now.
The night before the first task, the Forbidden Forest was shrouded in dense, cold darkness, broken only by the orange glow of a large bonfire in a deep clearing.
Dressed in dark clothing and wrapped in a powerful Disillusionment Charm, not a single branch creaked under his boots. Aurelian infiltrated the perimeter of the makeshift camp that the dragon tamers had set up. The smell of wood smoke and roasted meat filled the air.
In the distance, around a large bonfire, loud laughter and off-key singing could be heard. The keepers were celebrating the calm before tomorrow's storm, passing bottles of fire whiskey and relaxing under the false security that their beasts were fast asleep.
As they drew closer to the makeshift camp, the raucous laughter and clinking of bottles grew louder.
"To Charlie and his new burns!" toasted a bearded keeper, raising a half-empty bottle.
"May Merlin protect us tomorrow when these beasts are unleashed!" replied another, laughing nervously.
Aurelian watched them for a moment longer with a look of disinterest, before circling the camp, skirting the tents until he reached the area of massive cages reinforced with iron and the occasional rune.
There they were. Four immense structures reinforced with magic, containing four of the most lethal creatures in the magical world.
As soon as Aurelian set foot inside the security perimeter, the silence was broken. Dragons, supreme predators with keen senses, did not need to see him directly to know that something had entered their territory.
The Hungarian Horntail raised its spiked head and let out a guttural growl that made the ground shake. The Welsh Green stirred and opened one eye, the Swedish Short-Snout let out a snort that expelled a cloud of sparks. The Chinese Fireball scratched the ground. They could smell his magic, they could sense an intruder.
Before any of them could roar and alert the keepers, Aurelian acted.
He expanded his magical aura. Dense and heavy as lead, it flooded the space like a wave, crushing the will of the beasts. It was the projection of a predator much greater than them.
The magical pressure fell squarely on the cages, communicating a clear and primitive message: "I am the threat here. Be quiet."
The dragons, sensitive creatures who worshipped pure power, stood still. The Hungarian Horntail closed his mouth, looking at him cautiously instead of aggressively as before. The four dragons cowered slightly in their cages, their survival instincts warning them that the small human was stronger and more dangerous than any of them.
"Good boys," Aurelian whispered, approaching the bars without fear.
He reached into his robe and pulled out four thick glass jars, sealed with black wax. The liquid inside was a deep, viscous purple.
"Kravix, old friend, you never disappoint me," Aurelian murmured, looking at the jars.
The Gaunt account manager at Gringotts had obtained the mixture for a price... somewhat exorbitant on the black market. "The Titan's Sigh." A potion capable of sedating the nervous system of an adult dragon, rendering it docile, slow, and strangely cooperative for at least forty-eight hours, without rendering it completely unconscious so that the sabotage would not be obvious.
Aurelian knew that in the original story Harry faced the Hungarian Horntail, but he couldn't trust the "fate" of this new timeline. If Harry pulled out the Chinese Fireball and it decided to incinerate him in the first three seconds, his father's entire resurrection plan would go to hell, and consequently his own.
"I'm not taking any chances," Aurelian declared.
With a wave of his hand, he made the first vial levitate. The cap popped off, and Aurelian directed the liquid straight into Horntail's nostrils. The beast sniffed the vapors curiously and then licked the liquid floating in the air, attracted by the aroma of cooked meat that the potion imitated.
He repeated the process with the Common Welsh Green, the Swedish Short-Snout, and the Chinese Fireball.
One by one, the dragons blinked slowly. Their pupils dilated and their movements became heavy and sluggish. The Hungarian Horntail, who seconds before had been ready to kill, let out a long sigh and lay down, looking at Aurelian with the indifference of a domestic cat tired of its master's attention.
"Perfect" said Aurelian, putting away the empty vials.
Now, even if Harry decided to dance in front of them, he would have a chance of surviving.
He checked one last time that the keepers were still singing, completely drunk, oblivious to the fact that their beasts had just been neutralized by a sixth-year student.
With a satisfied smile, Aurelian turned and vanished into the darkness of the forest, returning to the castle with a clear conscience and ready to enjoy the next day's spectacle. Whatever happened tomorrow, Harry Potter would have a clear path to surviving the first trial.
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