"The Dragon's Judgment"
While everyone watched expectantly as the show came to an end, Einar remained seated, unmoving. His gaze was fixed on the Hungarian Horntail"analytical and piercing"as if he could see beyond its scales, understanding its rage and its pain.
The handlers approached with wands drawn and trembling steps, carefully measuring each movement as though walking a tightrope stretched between life and death.
The crowd, however, remained rooted to the spot. They stayed to witness, with morbid curiosity, the attempt to cage once more the most dangerous of the four dragons.
Einar frowned. He was still irritated by the use of such majestic creatures as entertainment for an ignorant audience. If not for his promise to help the two boys with their tasks, he would have already stood up and given the organizers an unforgettable lesson"one by one.
"Ridiculous…" he murmured under his breath, though the scorn in his voice was unmistakable.
Suddenly, a scream tore through the air:
"Watch out!"
The Horntail's chain snapped with a sharp crack that chilled every soul present. The handlers stumbled back in horror as the beast broke free.
Chaos erupted. People scattered in every direction, tripping over each other like stampeding cattle. The now-liberated dragon turned its furious gaze toward the men who had been holding its eggs, and with a deafening roar, it opened its jaws and lunged toward one of them.
Then, before the stunned eyes of all, a lone figure stood.
Einar.
He walked toward the beast with steady steps, without a trace of fear. And just as the jaws were about to close around the handler, Einar raised a hand and caught the Horntail's mouth as if he were stopping a stray ball.
His black cloak billowed in the wind. He did not take a single step back. He did not tremble. His foot remained planted with the solidity of a mountain.
The Horntail let out a roar of pain as its jaws crashed into what felt like an unbreakable steel wall. It recoiled, confused, and upon seeing who had stopped it, froze.
It was that same human… the one who had looked at it with respect days earlier, while it was in its cage.
Then, in front of everyone, the dragon lowered its head like a scolded dog, slowly backing away in submission.
Einar said nothing. He watched in silence. The dragon, as if aware it was being judged, averted its gaze toward its eggs, as though trying to justify itself.
Einar let out a deep sigh.
"Honestly… wizards in this world are pathetic fools," he said with a calm that chilled more than a scream. "Fighting a dragon is meant to be a trial of valor and honor, not some circus act to entertain a mob of imbeciles."
He walked, unhurried, toward the trembling handler still clutching the eggs.
"Give them to me," he ordered, his voice quiet but firm.
The man obeyed without question. Einar pulled out a black cloth pouch, carefully placed the eggs inside, and then hung them from one of the dragon's tusks. The beast lowered its head to receive them, as if finally at peace.
At that moment, the murmurs began"protests, insults…
"Who do you think you are?!" one shouted.
"Insolent!" cried another.
But one word was enough. Just one.
"Silence."
Einar's voice was not a shout, but a command"one imbued with a power so primal and immense that even the air seemed to freeze.
The mouths of the crowd shut at once. Not out of fear… but because they could not open them. It was as if some invisible force had sealed their lips.
And then they all felt it.
The presence.
As if a hundred invisible dragons had materialized around them, watching with hunger and judgment.
Einar looked at them all, his expression like carved stone, his gaze golden like the ancient fire of the first dragons.
"You endanger the lives of students. You use sacred beasts as playthings to amuse a crowd of fools."
He turned his eyes toward the three headmasters watching from the stands, their faces now sober and grim, as if facing something far above them in power and morality.
"You… teachers, headmasters… are the ones meant to protect your students. Even if it means facing down a dragon or venturing into deadly ruins. But instead, you use them for the enjoyment of others. You don't deserve those titles."
Einar's gaze burned. Not just with anger, but with the weight of a thousand broken oaths.
"I am ashamed to share rank with you as Archmage. You deserve neither to teach nor to lead the next generation."
Behind him, the Horntail lay down like a loyal guardian, shielding him with the reverence one might grant a god.
Einar turned and walked out of the arena. The dragon followed like a faithful hound. No one dared to move. No one dared to breathe.
Silence reigned. And the weight of Einar's words crushed the conscience of every soul present like an invisible slab of stone.
Even the headmasters had no reply.
Even Dumbledore… merely frowned.
...…
Einar led the Horntail back to the cages. The other dragons watched him from their prisons, and for a moment, it seemed as if they recognized his authority.
Charlie was the first to approach. Despite his fear, curiosity lit up his eyes.
"You have to teach me how to do that," he said, still stunned.
"Control dragons?" Einar asked, not looking back.
"No... make an entire crowd and three headmasters go silent while you scold them," Charlie laughed nervously.
Einar ignored him and changed the subject.
"What do you do with the dragons?"
Charlie sighed.
"On the farms, they live freely... more or less. They have their caves, they fly... we protect them more than control them. But some are dangerous... we try not to harm them. You know, they've got big teeth and terrible memories for forgiveness."
Einar looked at him silently, then asked in a dry tone:
"Then why were they used for this nonsense?"
Charlie lowered his head.
"Our boss... he's an idiot. If something makes gold, he takes it. Even if it means killing a dragon and selling its skin as a coat for some pure-blooded moron..."
Einar nodded slowly. Then he reached into his robe and pulled something out that made Charlie hold his breath.
It was a scale. Black as night, the size of a human head.
"This is from a black dragon. Divide the material among your colleagues. It won't help you control dragons... but it'll keep them from attacking you or seeing you as an enemy. That way I won't have to replace the staff in the future," he said, tossing it with a precise motion.
Charlie caught it, astonished.
"Replace the staff? What do you mean?"
But when he looked up, Einar was already gone.
Beside him, the Horntail looked at the scale... then at Charlie... and, with total calm, stepped into its cage.
The keepers, stunned, quickly shut the door.
...….
"Dren, buy all the farms where dragons are treated as merchandise. Leave standing only those that respect them as noble creatures," ordered Einar in a calm yet authoritative voice.
As soon as he spoke those words, a black mist, dense and alive, emerged from his back like a living shadow. The darkness took the shape of the daedric servant and vanished into the air as if it had never been there, silently departing to fulfill its mission.
"At once, master," whispered an ethereal voice on the wind, heard only by Einar.
"Professor Einar!" Hermione exclaimed, approaching excitedly, followed by the Weasley twins. "Would you like to join us at the party?"
"Of course," Einar replied, allowing a small smile to light his face"calm and unshakable as a mountain.
He followed them to the Gryffindor common room, where cheers echoed everywhere. Harry was being tossed into the air by his classmates, surrounded by a storm of laughter and shouts.
Noticing the professor's presence, several students greeted him enthusiastically. His very presence"solemn yet welcoming"filled the room with a respectful calm.
"Professor! Teach us to control dragons like Harry!" one student asked.
Einar let out a soft, barely perceptible chuckle.
"Controlling dragons is not something easily taught," he replied. "Harry was able to do it because of his ability to speak Parseltongue. But learning the language isn't enough. A heart in harmony with the creature is the true secret."
His words fell with the weight of ancient wisdom, making the students fall silent, processing the meaning.
"Harry, open the egg!" they shouted then, caught up in the excitement.
"You want me to open it?" Harry asked proudly, pulling out the golden egg and opening it.
A deafening, terrifying screech burst from within"a sound so inhuman and sharp that everyone clutched their ears in pain.
Einar remained silent, watching. His expression did not change, but his eyes sparkled as he detected a hidden pattern in the distortion.
"Don't ever do that again!" Seamus shouted desperately.
Harry quickly looked to Einar for help, as if his gaze alone could save him from confusion.
"I can give you clues," Einar said calmly. "But if you solve this on your own, what you gain will be more valuable than any spell or potion. It will be something you carry with you as part of your growth."
"He's right," Hermione said quickly. "Professor Einar is here to guide you, not to solve your life for you."
Harry sighed in resignation.
"Alright... I'll try."
Einar placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't worry. Even if you don't discover the message in time, I'll make sure you and your friends come to no harm. That's a promise."
With that assurance, the professor stepped away from the commotion.
"Won't you stay for the party, Professor?" Hermione asked.
"No. I'm a professor, not a blind chaperone. And...""he glanced at the twins, who were discreetly trying to hide several bottles behind a curtain""I shouldn't allow students to smuggle alcohol and other mischief."
The twins laughed nervously as they tried to hide their "supplies."
"Have fun," said Einar with a slight smile, leaving with a calm stride.
…
Back in his room, Einar carefully placed two dragon eggs on his desk. He observed them for a long moment, his thoughts as deep as the Dwemer ruins he had explored in his youth.
These dragons weren't like the ones from Skyrim. They didn't speak ancient tongues or possess the wisdom of Alduin, Odahviing, or Durnehviir. They were wild creatures, intelligent in their own way, yet still driven more by instinct than honor.
"I cannot raise them. The Dragonborn should not be their father," he murmured to himself.
"I'll give them to Cedric and Harry. Odahviing or Durnehviir will know how to guide them."
He placed the eggs carefully on an enchanted cloth that regulated their temperature, then lay back on the bed, arms crossed behind his head, staring at the stone ceiling lit by the faint glow of runic glyphs.
Outside, the mist returned in silence, and the Horntail dragon slept peacefully for the first time in years, guarded by an aura only a Dragonborn could emit.
And so, while Hogwarts celebrated in laughter, no one realized that the fate of dragons"and perhaps the entire magical world"had already begun to change under the shadow of a single man:
Einar Dovahkiin, the Dragon of the North.