His hands were strong, but sore. After two days of sewing leathers, the uniforms were finally complete. Bhaktar held up the last of them, and nodded to himself. He'd have to rest his hands up, they were aching. He was adept with the needle as well as the knife, and he actually preferred the hard work of scraping and dunking and sewing, to the instant-fix of using a spell or charm to do all this work for him. It gave him a sense of satisfaction when he finished a piece by hand.

Besides, it was the necromancy that he had to concentrate his magical efforts on. He wasn't the only one in House Domina that liked necromancy. He'd noticed a bunch of the younger students coming in, and among them at least one or two were eager to share notes or peek over his shoulder as he worked.

They had a new - temporary - instructor for the class this term. Since Trudy sometimes balked at the idea of using true necromancy, they found someone who was clearly adept and had no fear of the subject. Her name was Sean - "say ahn", not "shawn" - and she was a rabbit.

A rabbit necromancer. Well, she was also a warrior mage of some repute in her world.

And, there was more... She had a dragon. Several actually. And a couple children. Half-human children. Bhaktar was drawn to them, but didn't want to admit it. He thought they were adorable, and maybe that wasn't the tough-guy-dead-mage that everyone thought he should be. But the kids! The eldest among them was barely ten, with golden blond hair and yellow tips on his ears. The girl in the middle had strawberry blond tipped hair and ears, while the youngest of them - twins - were odder with fur in deep red, one had yellow hair and eartips, while the other had white. Bhaktar wasn't sure who their father was, but they carried themselves regally.

Attending the necromancy class was Bhaktar's favorite thing at the school, apart from being comissioned to make outfits or fix them. He knew that he'd have a good job no matter what he wound up doing in the real world after he graduated. He could get by in the human world well enough - people liked him, because they thought he was sexy with his grey hair. At his age, sixteen, he was hardly a youth by elfin standards, but he was already most of the way to adulthood according to the humans. He didn't feel like trying to fit into his elfin side - why bother when they'd just mock him?

And out live him, by the way. Of course he'd be living longer than his human friends, even the wizards who lived much longer couldn't hold a candle to the elves. And these weren't "house elf" elves, either. His heritage was of the true Fey, the hidden ones, the kindly folk. Not so kindly after all, were they?

Bhaktar folded up the uniforms and summoned boxes for them. Each of them then flew down the halls to their respective owner - the Quidditch games could go on now, and they'd be able to compete while looking good.

The purple dyes weren't cheap, but Zora managed to get enough for everything. She was weird enough already that when she asked for something the Muggle way, she got it. Shopkeepers would argue with Bhaktar, but not her.

They had more pride in their finished work, she said, when that work was done right. Even though she was known to use charms to keep herself in clothing or style moment by moment, she appreciated the hard work that went into leathers.

Bhaktar finally could rest. It was early in the morning, just past midnight, and he was exhausted. Yet, his mind refused to stop going. His hands tingled from the effort that he'd been putting into the leathers, he kept flexing them and eventually he got up and walked to the infirmary.

He had to find something that would take the pain away, something that could ...

"Hello," said a child's voice, it was musical, it belonged to one of Sean's children. The girl, what was her name? "I'm Saijitsu," she reminded him.

"What are you doing up so late, Saijitsu?" Bhaktar asked.

"I thought you would need some help. So I found some salves. Mommy keeps these kinds of things too, and she raises the dead like you do. She raised my daddy."

"That was more information than I needed to know," Bhaktar muttered. The girl's adorable face had brilliant blue eyes, wide and shining. She was perhaps seven, older than her twin siblings by a couple years at most. "What is this one for?" He asked, as she presented him one bottle after another.

"I dunno," she said. "But this one has pink bits in it. Pink is nice, don't you think?"

"I think so..." Bhaktar wondered how long this would last. He was amused by her, but he really did want to get something ... He read the bottle's scribbled label and doused his hands with it. "This might be what we're looking for," he said. "I think it's better already."

It was, actually. Warmed by the pink bits, perhaps, Bhaktar flexed his fingers again and felt nothing more than a bit of stiffness.

"Thank you, Saijitsu," he said. He offered his hand, "now, I think you should probably get back to your dorm. Right? Will your mother be looking for you?"

Saijitsu shook her head, "mommy is out with the dragons. They go out sometimes, and I think she sees daddy. He has to run the kingdom you know."

"Your... father is a king?"

She nodded again, the big mop of her hair falling over her eyes. "Yup."

"Well, let's get you back to bed anyway. Little girls shouldn't be out in big cold castles by themselves, should they?"

"I raised a garden gnome after the cat killed it," she said proudly.

"Well then that's going to be worth extra credit when you're in class, huh?" Bhaktar said. He hefted her onto his shoulder, and she giggled half the way back to the teachers' halls. The other half, she was asleep.

He knocked gently on the big wooden door, where a plaque had been placed saying "necromancer at work", and the door opened to reveal Saichu, the girl's older brother.

"There she is," he said, quietly. "Thank you for bringing her back. She does that sometimes."

"She found some ointment for my hands, she's a good girl."

"She's a pest," Saichu grumbled. Of course, that would be because they were siblings. Bhaktar didn't know much about that sort of thing. He had been raised alone by his mother, whose indescretions with the fey were well known among the villagers. If he had any other siblings, they would have been the ones given any special treatment, not him. Bhaktar carefully deposited Saijitsu onto her bed, tucked her in, and bid the yellow-haired long eared boy good night.

The rest of the night, Bhaktar slept soundly. Though he did have odd dreams of tending a rabbit pen, which then exploded from all the little baby bunnies, and all of them had musical voices like Saijitsu did.

***

The class wasn't full, to say the least. Bhaktar was there, along with Saichu - not just because he was the instructor's son, but because he was a natural necromancer. If it was true that their father had been raised from the dead... Was it before or after? Yup - that was too much information. The other three in the class were Aciebeth Kekakopolus, the Greek girl, Aseseon Battul, who had the feathery wings of an Aer fey, and Donovan, the ghost who lived with Trudy. He kept fading in and out of vision, while he concentrated on what Sean had to tell them.

Bhaktar took notes, while she spoke. How the ritual she described could be laid out in a number of different ways depending on the size of the location and the speed of the winds. It would be bad to lose any of your subject's dried components on a stiff breeze after all. How would he handle the test situation? Given the choice between a cliffside nook and a cramped castle oubliete? Hrm...

He handed in his assignment with the others, and lingered in the room when the rest had gone ahead.

"Your daughter helped me out last night, she was up a little late," he told Sean. The usagi tilted her head. "She was in the infirmary, and she knew just what to get for my hands. I finished up the Quidditch uniforms last night, so ..."

"Was she?" Sean said, glancing at her son, who shrugged. "Well, at least she was doing something useful."

"She also said something, you were ... out with the dragons?" Bhaktar asked. Sean nodded and grinned widely.

"They're very handy for transportation between worlds. Have you met Ajandeykth and Sundai? They are my dragons, and Saichu's pair are wandering about as well." She made to show him out through the other door, leading to the back portion of the castle.

"Well I've got a class to get to," he said, rubbing the back of his head and looking around kind of guilty.

"I'll get you excused. You're not going to need much in the way of potions or charms, the way you work this class. You'll be fine with your NEWTs."

Bhaktar brightened up. "If you think so," he said. He followed her, and Saichu came along. Outside, in the courtyard where the Quidditch team usually met up, were a selection of vastly different dragons. Two looked to be twins, with raggedy grey-fire-ash wings and flame colored bodies. Those were Saichu's twin bonds, Sha'Liz, and Lisz'Ha. There was a small red colored one, with bunny ears as long as Sean's, and no wings - she zapped around like a very fast, fairly large rabbit. Sundai, apparently. The largest of the bunch, a white with red and green trim on her wings and limbs, was Ajandeyketh.

She boldly came up to the half elf. Sniffing him up and down, in a somewhat embarrassing way, she finally met his eye and then turned to her rider.

They seemed to confer, and then Sean smiled. "She says you should be a bonder. And that she knows of a place."

"A... you mean ride a dragon?" He stammered. This was a twist. "But I... My studies!"

"You will have more than enough time to study, even around learning dragon care," Saichu said. "It'll probably come naturally to you too."

"Like it came to you, huh?" Bhaktar asked, and rumpled the short bunny-hybrid's hair. Because he was bigger and older, was the only reason that Saichu didn't level him with some kind of curse. It wasn't because he didn't know any good ones. That was apparent, and Bhaktar gave the boy a grin. "I mean you're quite talented, Saichu. You don't really need to be in that class with me, you're much better at it than anyone else, and you aren't even an official student."

Saichu gave off a big happy grin. Ajandeykth nudged Bhaktar.

"Would you like me to make arrangements? You'll be surprised how easy it will be to fit back in again once you've got a dragon, if you pair up with one."

"But... Yeah, I guess so." Bhaktar said. He was flabbergasted. This was amazing. A great day indeed!

***

"Why all the homework?" Bhaktar asked himself, as he packed up. "I mean, I'll be almost two years older by the time I get back."

"But you're a half-elf," Saijitsu said out of the blue, having appeared out of nowhere behind his door. Bhaktar nearly lept out of his skin. "You won't be as old as the elves."

"How did you--" He sighed, and continued to pack. "That's true, but it won't be much help. In human years, I'm not slowing down. The elves don't accept me, so it won't matter that I'll be just a young child to them when I get back."

"Then don't go back to them, they sound mean." Saijitsu said. She sat on his bed, watching him pack up his tools. "Mommy says that you should always practice your arts. She says I'm too young to do that, but I do anyway."

"Just like your brother, I bet," Bhaktar said. She giggled.

"I like you, can you be my big-bigger brother?" She asked, innocently.

Bhaktar suddenly choked up. He had not expected this. His face blushed, he could feel his ears turning red. "I ... I don't have a little sister, so I ... I guess that would be okay, Saijitsu."

"Call me Iji," she said.

"Iji, that's an interesting nickname. You won't forget me while I'm gone, will you?"

"Nope," she said, having crossed her legs and was swaying back and forth. "I can't forget about you. You're in my future. I see the future, you know."

The strange butterflies in Bhaktar's stomach went full speed. "Well, do you? I think so, you were in the right place the other night, did you know that your mother's dragon would search me?"

She nodded, her ears flopping.

"So.... I think what you might be thinking is we're gonna be more than brother and sister."

"Uh huh." She said. "We're gonna get married."

Bhaktar wasn't sure whether he should enterain this for long, but she was little, and girls thought every boy they had a crush on was going to marry them.

Right?

He couldn't shake that weird feeling though... What if they did? What if they had little bunny-babies? Would they be half-human and what? Odd - their kids would be just like them. Half and half.

Saijitsu had vanished, leaving the necromancer leathersmith to his own thoughts, to pack.

***

He was showed instructions on how to return, when and if he bonded. Bhaktar was to become a candidate at a place called Serpent's Reach, which gave him chills. The extra weight of homework for most of his classes bogged down one bag, but with his staff in one hand and three bags floating up to Ajandeykth's waiting arms, he wouldn't have any trouble getting around.

"You will do fine," Sean told him. "And don't forget to do your homework. Why not get a flitter and send it back to us while you're there?"

"How about I don't," Bhaktar said.

The Quidditch team, the Domina Gypsies, waved to him in unison, all wearing his beautiful purple and black uniforms. He could feel his ears growing red again and he was glad that the dragon was taking off. He had tears in his eyes. This would be a very interesting year...

The world where he was sent was unusual, at least in that there were many different types of humanoids living with each other. He wasn't sure whether they knew he wasn't full blooded anything, but they didn't seem to care.

That was good. But what put him on edge was that he felt that this clutch would turn him into something new. Saijitsu's words kept coming back to him. She did know the future.

He could be the son-in-law of a king. A necromancer king.

The thought suddenly made Bhaktar smile. As he did so, a rodent waddled its way out of what it thought was a safe hole into the room. But now that he was here, Bhaktar didn't much care for the intrusion. The room no longer belonged to rodents and chill winds after all.

He froze the rat with a wave of his hand, swept it into the air with a Leviosa spell, and then squinted in concentration. He uttered a curse that this world had never heard - and the pitiful beast expired without even drawing another breath.

The half elf caught it in his strong hand before it hit the floor. He got to work on it right away. He'd skin it, get it clean, leave the meager innards for the local cats or whatever else prowled the halls. He left those in a wooden bowl so no one thought ill of him for leaving scraps out on the open floor.

He set out all his working items he knew so well, needles, thread, twine, chemicals... And magic...

***

The rat turned out only mediocre. He hadn't been concentrating, and that threw off some of the stitchwork. But the animal animated and walked here and there, sniffing at corners and giving a strange look at Bhaktar when it found that it could not squeek.

He'd have to find a better pet later on. Perhaps he'd let this one just run down on magical energy - someone would find it later, stuffed, and maybe wonder about it.

That gave Bhaktar a bit of a grin.

He'd been here at Serpent's Reach for three weeks, and the classes he had to take were starting to get interesting. They were dealing with anatomy and skin disorders, which he paid a lot of attention to. They'd gone over fertility and growth the week before, and next time they were to actually go out and help tend the wounded dragons coming back from fighting whatever menace this world had.

Bhaktar could hardly imagine himself fighting on dragonback, though he was brave. He wasn't that brave. Nor was he stupid. His place would be with the healers -- or, something.

Another couple weeks passed, and he and the other bonders were getting restless. The clutch on the sands was dark, the queen dark, everything about it said it was hardly normal. And finally, they were asked to come to the sands - the eggs were shaking open.

Bhaktar might have been immune to whatever fears and paranoias one dragon supplied into people's heads. He thought though, it might have been more fun to find out what she'd done.

Then - the eggs. One dragonet broke through the shell, and its name was announced only once he'd bonded. Then... A supremely beautiful dark dragon came from one shell, while two bigger and noisier ones shattered their own shells.

The one hissed at the others, and found Bhaktar's side quickly and purposefully.

Bhaktar, Bhaktar!

That voice was a thrill, coming from the irridescent green-silver black dragon. I am Naspeth, and it is you I have searched for. You have the rare disposition for the dark arts, and with my help we will be a great pair. All life is a spell, Bhaktar, remember that.

Bhaktar knew that to be true. But there was more, even as the half elf reached to touch the four-winged dragon's nose.

The first ingredient to ours, however, is food.

Bhaktar laughed, "it certainly is, Naspeth," they left the sands oblivious to anyone else's results.

***

Bhaktar and Naspeth went around a bit, even participating in a flight or two before coming back to House Domina. By that time, Bhaktar was a bit older and wiser, by what, two years... Yet his little fangirl Saijitsu was still shadowing him in the halls. She was going to be lovely - but...

She stared at him as he readied his components for an animation spell, her large eyes unblinking.

"We will still marry, you know," she said with a faint grin. "I never said when." And of course she vanished promptly again.

NEXT!

Size: Large.

T-Power: Call Rain. Call Fog. Animate Dead. Mind Control. High Level Telekinesis.

Personality: Naspeth is a calm, quiet dragon who will prefer to sit and judge from the sidelines rather than become directly involved. This does not mean that Naspeth is inactive, nor is he a coward. He is, however, sneaky, and while the mass of some group is formulating one plot to solve a problem, he defaults to his own plan B, tying up the loose ends and making sure what needs to be done is done. While he doesn't have much of a sense of humor, he does have a horrible anger. This dragon could hold a grudge for centuries and will never forget it. In fact, his anger can be so strong that not only will the object of his irritation spark his rage, but everything that reminds him of it, from pictures, to artifacts, to offspring. Despite the fact, he is extremely loyal, always seeking to protect those within his Caer or vigilance whether they boil his blood or not.
When it comes to the ladies, Naspeth can be very charming, as long as the said female is into dark seduction. He will only be attracted to intelligent, capable females who provide not only grounds for attraction but also a certain degree of wit and talent. He will pursue those which catch his vigor with suave, unending affection, and when the flight comes, he won't necessarily play dirty, but he may make it clear to those challenging that this dragoness is claimed: You don't want me as your enemy, Dragoneth. Perhaps you should see if Goldeth catches your eye instead?

Basis: Naspeth is based off of Professor Snape.