The siblings comforted each other, sitting in Dumbledore's office. They were still a little bit in shock over finding Justin and Sir Nicholas the way that they did. They may not have known Justin that well, but could a ghost do that could possibly cause someone to do that to him. Sir Nicholas was the kindest ghost in the entire castle, other than the ghost of Hufflepuff, the Fat Friar.
There was also that even as mystic souls, they had no idea there was even anything that could petrify a ghost. Humans, yes. Ghosts, no. So that alone scared them.
The three siblings stared at the bird in Dumbledore's office and the bird looked balefully back, making its gagging noise again. Harry thought it looked very ill. Its eyes were dull and, even as Harry watched, a couple more feathers fell out of its tail. He was the animal expert of the three of them.
Harry was just thinking that all he needed was for Dumbledore's pet bird to die while he was alone in the office with it when the bird burst into flames.
The three yelped in shock and backed away into the desk. He looked feverishly around in case there was a glass of water somewhere but couldn't see one; the bird, meanwhile, had become a fireball; it gave one loud shriek and next second there was nothing but a smoldering pile of ash on the floor.
"Crud," the three swore.
The office door opened. Dumbledore came in, looking very somber.
"Professor," Harry gasped. "Your bird - I couldn't do anything - he just caught fire -"
To Harry's astonishment, Dumbledore smiled.
"About time, too," he said. "He's been looking dreadful for days; I've been telling him to get a move on."
He chuckled at the stunned look on Harry's face, then the realization hit them.
"Fawkes is a phoenix," Melody realized. "They live as long as they do, then they burst into flames when they die."
"And are then reborn from the ashes," Krinos finished.
They looked down in time to see a tiny, wrinkled, newborn bird poke its head out of the ashes. It was quite as ugly as the old one. But they knew that anywhere between a few weeks to a few months, he would start gaining his beautiful feathers again.
"It's a shame you had to see him on a Burning Day," said Dumbledore, seating himself behind his desk. "He's really very handsome most of the time, wonderful red and gold plumage. Fascinating creatures, phoenixes. They can carry immensely heavy loads, their tears have healing powers, and they make highly faithful pets."
In the shock of Fawkes catching fire, the three had forgotten what they were there for, but it all came back as Dumbledore settled himself in the high chair behind the desk and fixed them with his penetrating, light-blue stare.
Before Dumbledore could speak another word, however, the door of the office flew open with an almighty bang, and Hagrid burst in. A wild look in his eyes, his balaclava perched on top of his shaggy black hair, and the dead rooster still swinging from his hand.
"It wasn' Harry, Professor Dumbledore!" said Hagrid urgently. "I saw 'em seconds before that kid was found, they never had time, sir - "
Dumbledore tried to say something, but Hagrid went ranting on, waving the rooster around in his agitation, sending feathers everywhere.
"- it can't've bin 'em, I'll swear it in front o' the Ministry o' Magic if I have to -"
"Hagrid, I -"
"- yeh've got the wrong kids, sir. I know they'd never ='
"Hagrid!" said Dumbledore loudly. "I do not think that Harry, Krinos, or Melody attacked those people."
"Oh," said Hagrid, the rooster falling limply at his side. "Right. I'll wait outside then, Headmaster."
And he stomped out looking embarrassed.
"You don't think it was us, Professor?" Harry repeated hopefully as Dumbledore brushed rooster feathers off his desk. "Usually the ones first at the scene of the crime are suspected."
"Okay, that is enough mundane cop shows for you, Harry," Melody tells him.
"No, Harry, I don't," said Dumbledore, though his face was somber again. "But I still want to talk to you three."
They waited nervously while Dumbledore considered them, the tips of his long fingers together.
"I must ask you, Harry, whether there is anything you'd like to tell me," he said gently. "Anything at all."
The siblings shared looks with each other. They did have their own theories on the "monster" that was supposed to be in the chamber.
"Well, we do have our own theories, headmaster," Krinos admitted.
"You do," Dumbledore asked.
"We value our lives, so of course we would search for what could kill us," Harry says. "That Cerberus last year of scary enough even with my powers."
Dumbledore did have to admit to himself how that was not the smartest decision he had ever made.
"We do not think there are spells that can cause petrification like this, so we looked up creatures that have the ability," Melody started. "We then managed to narrow it down some more by including that it is Slytherin's monster, so it would most likely be snake-like in some way."
"So far, our list has a Dipsa, gorgon, basilisk, hydra, naga, Ladon, lamia, and an Aztec winged serpent," Harry listed. "Each of them are dangerous and magic snake creatures from around the world."
"But even then, none of them have the ability to petrify someone," Krinos says. "The closest we could get is a gorgon or a basilisk. But neither has the right power. Basilisks kill anyone that sees their eyes and gorgons turn people to stone if they look them in the eye. No petrification abilities at all."
"If I had to guess, I'd say that it might be a gorgon with less power than a normal one," Harry shrugged. "But that is a long-shot and I doubt that someone would miss a woman with snakes for hair slithering around the school."
"Those are all very good suggestions and I appreciate the help," Dumbledore tells them. "We have to stop whoever or whatever is causing this or Hogwarts might close."
"Uh... on the bright side, you finally get the retirement that you probably really deserve," Melody tried to joke.
Harry and Krinos could not help but facepalm.
"Oh, Melody," the brothers groaned.
Dumbledore soon sent the three to their respective dorms to sleep for the night. He figured that they would need some sleep for their first defense lesson with the new teacher. He was actually suggested by Olivia before he took her cousins back to Hogwarts after Lockhart's trial. He thought it was a great idea.
*****
Olivia wasn't kidding when she had told Dumbledore that Kingsley would make a great defense teacher. He was a great Auror and proud to serve justice, even if the Ministry he works in is the most corrupt place in all of magical Europe.
She did have to tell Dumbledore that Kingsley is, in fact, a mystic soul like herself and her cousins. He was born and raised in a mystic soul country, one of the few in the world, in Africa. The place is called Oerwoud, the African word for jungle, and is entirely hidden from the eyes of mundanes. The place is a kingdom hidden in the trees, literally. It is a place completely above their heads and hidden in the high branches of skyscraper-high trees.
Kingsley's powers were known as Elemental Armor magic. He can take any natural element from around him and turn it into weapons and armor when he touches it. It is almost like he absorbs them, but he simply uses them.
Kingsley was always a friend to the Gardna family, almost like an uncle to them. He knew their parents and acted as a sort-of spy for mystic souls on the status of magical Britain. If there was ever a chance that mystic souls could ever be accepted there. Kingsley was there for a lot of the Gardna children's childhoods. He's able to bounce between Britain, Oerwoud, and Greece using a magical door in his house that a portal creation mystic soul enchanted for him.
That was also how he was a great father to T'challa. T'challa is actually adopted. He was abandoned by his non-magical mother after his magical father died when he was three. Kingsley gladly took him in. Despite using his birth father's last name, T'challa does say that Kingsley is his father with or without a blood connection.
"Hey, Kingsley," the trio greeted as they walked into the classroom.
The secret mystic soul smiled at the siblings. Since it was the first DADA class any of the years would have without Lockhart, he decided to have all the houses combine in order for him to catch them up as quickly as possible. He did separate the years because... you know... common sense. Something that always seemed to be lacking in this magical community.
"Hello, you three," he greeted them back. "Glad that some students decided to be early."
"We mostly did this to see you," Melody giggled.
"Too bad we can't call you 'Uncle Kingsley' while here," Harry says. "Don't want the idiots we call classmates to think you'll play favorites."
"No kidding," Krinos crossed his arms. "Just be happy that there are some students in our year that aren't annoying. Otherwise, we'd have lost our mind by the end of the first month last year."
"You three are bestowing a lot of confidence in me about your year mates," Kingsley playfully rolled his eyes.
"Just be prepared for the Gryffindor Harpy, the Loud-Mouth Garbage Disposal, and Blond Peacock," Harry warned him. "They are the worst of all the idiots in this school."
"The Harpy is also known to shout out answers to questions even if she is not the one that was asked the question in the first place," Melody said.
"I've seen multiple teachers reprimand her and take points away, but she still does not stop," Harry said.
"Quite annoying and pathetic, really," Krinos stated. "Just as pathetic as the Garbage Disposal's complaining about his hand-me-down clothes and the Peacock's need to try and use his father's name to get everything handed to him on a silver platter."
"I'd rather willingly join a demon cult than give anything to him other than a punch to a face," Harry put a hand on his hip.
The rest of the students started to file into the classroom. The siblings went to their desks and sat down.
"Good afternoon, everyone," Kingsley greeted the class. "I am Professor Shacklebolt and I will be teaching Defense Against The Dark Arts for the rest of the year."
The rest of the students looked at their new teacher with suspicion and curiosity. Most of the "pureblood" students relaxed since they knew he was an Auror because of their parents or another relative worked in the Ministry. Susan Bones seemed to be the only one that looked like she knew him personally.
"This is gonna be good," Harry muttered softly.
Kingsley took out his wand and pointed it at a blackboard next to his desk. Words started writing themselves onto the board. They soon wrote out the words "Different Magic In The World" on the board. That made the siblings' eyes widen. They hope he has a plan or this would not end well for them.
"There are many different magical threats around the world," Kingsley started. "Lockhart might have been a fraud and never did anything beyond being a criminal..."
Hermione growled in her seat, sitting in the front on the other side of the room. She was still under the delusion that the idiot was innocent.
"But the creatures in his books were, in fact, real," Kingsley continued. "And they had been all over the world, not just in Britain. As your Defense teacher, it is my job to prepare you for them."
"Why would we face any of them in the first place," Hannah Abbott asked after she was called on.
"There are some things that attract some of them right to you," Kingsley explains, spelling a name onto the board. "Take banshees for example. Can anyone tell me what attracts a banshee to you?"
He called on Melody when she raised her hand.
"Banshees are described as both spirits, magical creatures, and demons," she says. "They are attracted to people in sorrow. Like a parent that has lost a child or a husband/wife that lost their partner. If you are experiencing great sorrow, a banshee can use their call in order to find you."
"Correct, Miss.Gardna. Ten points to Ravenclaw," Kingsley said. "It is correct that banshees can use their call to find their preferred victims of people in great sorrow. Other demons or monsters find their victims through other means. Smell, magical sight, vibrations, or even just plain luck. Can anyone name another creature that chooses specific victims like a banshee?"
It took a few minutes as the trio did not want to hog all the questions, but it seemed like no one else knew the answer. Not even Hermione, and she looked very annoyed and angry over not knowing something. Harry was the one to raise his hand this time when it became clear that only they knew any examples.
"There are wendigos," Harry said. "They are werewolf-like creatures that are said to have frozen hearts because hearts are the only thing they can eat while in their monstrous forms. But the drawback is that they can only consume the hearts of those with the same blood type as them."
"Correct, Mr.Potter-Gardna. Ten points to Gryffindor," Kingsley says. "Anyone else have an example?"
He looked at the class that was not the trio. He hoped that there were, at least, some of them that actually had more than one brain-cell. But from the looks on their faces, it did not look like that was gonna happen.
Krinos rolled his eyes, then raised his hand. He was quickly called on by Kingsley, who really did not like the idiocy that was wand-users.
"Grimlocks," he said. "They're demons that live underground, mostly. They steal the eyesight of children and use it to gain the ability to see the auras of good people and use their own auras to strangle them."
Nevile, having heard about the grimlocks from them before, gulped as he heard about them a second time.
"How do you three know about these things," Susan Bones asked them.
"We've been fighting demons since we were old enough to cast a single spell," Harry crossed his arms. "Demons hunt innocents, magical or mundane, and someone has to stop them."
"You're not old enough to deal with them," Hermione glared at the three. "You shouldn't be lying about something so serious."
"And you should shut your mouth about things that you have no idea about," Krinos glared back at her.
"Demons are everywhere, other than here for reasons we still do not understand," Melody said.
"And demons also do not care about your age," Harry says. "You can be old, young, teen, adult, or child. They will kill you no matter what age you are. We fight them because it is better for magical beings to fight them than it is for them to kill mundanes that don't even know what they are. At least we would be able to fight back."
"Very good, Mr.Potter-Gardna," Kingsley stopped the argument from going any further. "The three are correct, both with magical beings having to fight demons and the difference in creatures between countries."
"So there are really demons out there," Wayne Hopkins asked.
"Yes, there are," Kingsley answered. "But as Miss. Gardna said, there are no demons in Britain and have not been for hundreds of years. But there are dangers like them even in our own backyard. Acromantula, vampires, savage werewolves, dark wizards, many different things. But it is also good to know that there are many different dangers and magic depending where you are. Can anyone give an example of a magical being or creature specific to one area of the globe?"
Thanking any god out there, this time it was someone other than the trio that raised their hand. This time, they were joined by Daphne Greengrass and Blaise Zabini. Even Neville raised his hand. Kingsley picked Daphne.
"Sirens," she said. "The only known sightings and stories about sirens all come from Greece."
"Correct, Miss.Greengrass. Ten points to Slytherin," Kingsley tells her. "The only known place that sirens have ever been is in Greece. The same could be about Quetzalcoatl in Aztec culture, the Headless Horseman in America, the Demon Sorcerers in China, as well as the Oni and kitsune in Japan. Every country and culture have their own unique monsters, magic, and mystical beings."
"But none of those things are real," Hermione argued in her usual 'I know everything and you don't' voice. "They're just stories. Myths and legends, really."
"Miss. Granger, the magical work is a lot bigger than you could ever imagine," Kingsley tells her.
He really had to stop himself from hexing the annoying girl when she spoke out of turn like that just to try and make others think like her. The trio really was right to warn him about her.