Heir of Hogwarts

Chapter Six

"I can't believe it's been a month since Liz disappeared," Draco said, on their way to Defense Against the Dark Arts.

"I for one am glad she's gone," Hermione remarked with a sniff. "She wasn't that nice and she flaunted the stuff the she had and we didn't. Plus, she was a self-absorbed sarcastic flake who probably didn't know how to even make scrambled eggs."

Draco, Harry Ron, and Hermione were on their way to Defense Against the Dark Arts together, seeing that it was a joint Slytherin and Gryffindor class that year.

They looked at Hermione with a knowing look in their eyes. By then they had realized that Liz was right and Hermione did fancy Draco. Since Liz had disappeared that fateful day, Hermione had cosied up to Draco, trying to 'comfort him' or so she said.

As they entered the classroom, they saw Gavin. He had been lurking around school for the past month, 'preparing his curriculum' apparently.

"Settle down, settle down," He said to the class, once they had all arrived. "Now, since I don't know you that well, and you don't know me, either, I will introduce myself. My name is Gavin de Montcrecy, my title is Duke-Mage Gavin de Montcrecy, but I don't use my title." Gavin smiled and cocked his head to his right.

Draco heard sighs of adoration from all around the room; they all came from females.

"Unless I'm in London," he added with some afterthought. "Now, I'm going to teach you what I learned at Lorien. At least I will teach you what I am allowed to teach you."

"What d'you mean, what you're 'allowed to teach us'?" asked Harry, puzzled.

Gavin sighed, and paused before he answered, "Lorien Academy of Magic is centered around battle and defense magic. When a person goes there, they already know stuff like Charms, Transfiguration, Potions, Divination, Astronomy, Runes, Care of Magical Creatures, and other things like that. It comes naturally, you'll instinctively know how to do those subjects, they do have courses on those subjects, but they are either to keep you from getting rusty, or for extracurricular or for extra credit."

"What about Liz? What did she do at Lorien?" piped a voice, it was one of the girls that Liz liked, but didn't have enough time to get to know her better, her name was Anja Amintay, a pureblood, who was a Ravenclaw, second cousin of the Blacks, daughter of Sirius's father's youngest brother daughter. She turned and smiled at Draco, they knew each other from balls, and other such boorish events, home to snobbery and pride and prejudice.

"Liz was different," Gavin stated, looking at the ceiling. "She had lived there all her life. Leprechauns who live there raised her. She knew all of the stuff that I just mentioned from birth. Hereditary, it is. She has great talent for weather magic, is an animage, and other such rare talents...Let us just say she was extremely gifted. Anyway, back to my original question. Mr. Potter, there are a great deal of things you are able to do, there are also a few things that you will never be able to do."

"Such as?"

"Such as you will never be able to summon a centaur and make it do your bidding, or control the mind of someone else. Such as using Dark forces, without letting them contaminate you. And other things like that."

"Are you saying you can do that, Professor?" demanded Draco.

"No. There is only one Mage who can do those things. This Mage is the only one in a thousand years, since the founders of Hogwarts, to achieve the title of Master Mage, that title is extremely hard to get, and takes years of hard study and immense power."

"And who is that?" asked Ron. "You?"

"No, not me."

"Then who?" Hermione inquired.

"You'll find out when the Master chooses to revealed himself. Now, if you will turn your books to page three..."

The class rang with excited voices as the bell sounded. "Read chapters one through five, and write a two-and-a-half foot summary of it. ONLY two-and-a-half feet, not a inch less, not one more!"

Hermione was worrying about how she could write only two-and-a-half feet of parchment about anything, when all of a sudden, when they were passing the front doors in the Entrance hall and they saw.......

Chapter Seven

Liz was standing in the Entrance Hall, looking vibrant and alive. They ran to her, Hermione walked looking like she was a five year old cheated of a chocolate frog.

"Liz! What are you doing back here? Where were you? Why didn't you call us?" Draco asked frantically, breathless as he waited for a reply.

"But I did call one of you," Liz said, frowning. "Two weeks ago I called my cousin, didn't she tell you?"

"You have a cousin? I thought you mother and father were only children. Unless it was a step cousin..." Harry remarked. Liz laughed and shook, then nodded her head.

"She's my second cousin on my biological father's side. Her name is Anja Amintay, she's really fun, and I used to hang out with her when I came to England on holiday years ago. She didn't know we were cousins then, but now she does, and she adores me. Anyway there's someone I want you all to meet. I met him while I was in New York; he used to go to NYMA, or New York Magic Academy. I've got to go get him. Wait here." With that she turned and raced out the door calling a name they couldn't hear properly.

"I wonder who it is she brought back," Draco mused.

"Don't you know?" Said a slightly familiar voice, they turned and saw Anja. "My cousin is the Queen of relationships. I'd give three galleons that this is her new 'special friend'." Anja laughed and turned to watch the door. Liz was walking with this guy, who was holding her hand, from the door over to them.

"Michael, I want you to meet my friends." When they saw Michael in the bright lights, the girls gasped. Michael was about 6'6 with black, curly hair that fell on his forehead, and sapphire eyes. *Oh, God.* thought Draco. *Not another Gavin.* He stepped forward and offered his hand.

"Hello Michael, my name is Draco Malfoy, it's nice to meet you. This is Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger." When he said their name, they stepped forward to shake his hand.

"It is an honor to meet you all," Michael said in his charming American accent. "Liz spoke of no one else, except she told me about two other young women. One Miss Ginny Weasley, and one Miss Anja Amintay."

"Hi, I'm Anja, Ginny is on her way back from Herbology right now, otherwise she'd be delighted to meet you."

They saw Gavin approaching, he was talking to Ginny; she had painfully cheerful expression on her face. When she finally was near enough she went over to Liz and they started whispering together.

"Liz! Liz! LIZ!" shouted Cho, who was running from the Great Hall. She ran over to Liz and Ginny and then they held a private conversation, which looked rather like a council of war. Gavin looked on, bemused, then turned to Michael and looked him up and down.

"Hello there, Michael isn't it?" Michael nodded. "Well Michael stay away from Liz, as she's my girlfriend." He gave Michael a meaningful look, then stalked into the Great Hall, pausing to talk to a fifth year who had stopped him. Liz walked up to the group and slid her hand into Draco's, smiling at him she began to ask about the month she had been absent.

"So, didn't Gavin start him Defense Against the Dark Arts classes today?"

"Yeah," said Harry glumly. "He didn't give Ron a straight answer about this really interesting question he asked, and he's the professor, he's supposed to answer our questions."

"What did you ask Ron?" Liz said, turning to Ron, brows high on her forehead. "How to turn algae into gold? Usually Gavin is pretty straight forward about things"

"I asked who the Master Mage is, he said that there hasn't been one since the founders. That doesn't make sense.Why wouldn't he tell us, unless," he said slowly. "Unless he was protecting someone." And with that, Ron got the we've-got-a-mystery-on-our-hands glint in his eyes.

"I don't think that this is one of those investigating things, Ron," said Liz, stiffly. "I think this is one of those drop-it-and-leave-it-alone things. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to show Michael the sites." With that, she let go of Draco's hand and grabbed Michael's and walked off with him, talking about some places called Burberrys, Saks, Tiffany's, and Borders.

"Boy, was she being defensive," remarked Anja, who had moved to stand beside Draco.

"Yeah, she was. Stiff, too. Normally she isn't this paranoid," Draco said softly. When his friends saw the look on his face, they knew he would be spaced out for the rest of the day, thinking about this.

*****************

Later that day at lunch they saw Liz standing in front of the teachers table, apparently deep in a conversation with Dumbledore. After she'd finished talking to Dumbledore she saw Draco, she brightened and ran over and hugged him.

"Congratulate me!" she said, a smile stretching ear to ear. "Come on, do it!"

"I will," Draco said, smiling back. "But what about?"

"Professor Dumbledore has told me that I really won't learn anything from Gavin, seeing that I'm so much more advanced that him, and has told me that I can become the Co-Professor for the Defense Against the Dark Arts! It's a great opportunity for me, and I won't have homework to do, and I can get used to the castle at the same time!" Draco felt the life drain out of him as she said this. The last thing he heard was: "Someone get a stretcher, he's fainting!" He didn't recognize the voice.