Disclaimer: I own nothing in the Harry Potter or Doctor Who universes.

"dialogue"
§Parsel§

AN: This took longer than I anticipated to finish. Apologies for the wait folks. I was blown away with the warm reception this story has received. As for the future of this story, my current plan (if people like this chapter) will be something of a mix of original adventures and cannon Who episodes. The latter is to ensure that the story actually progresses somewhere. Some events from canon will change, others will stay the same (fixed points and all that), but my focus tends to lean towards the characters and their interactions so plenty of that too. So let me know what you like and what you don't. As for this chapter, I realize the geography is probably not at all possible, but it's another planet and it's Doctor Who therefore SCIENCE!

"So what's different about Time Lords? You look basically humanish."

Rose responded smartly, "Apparently we just look Gallifreyan. Also he has two hearts, a non-linear perception of time and can regenerate."

Harry raised his eyebrows, "You can regenerate? Like a starfish?"

He had to admit the rather affronted look the Doctor gave him at that was pretty amusing.

"We don't regenerate like a starfish! When we die we regenerate into a new form."

Rose chimed in again, "Yeah, his last regeneration had big ears, way less hair and kept referring to all humans as apes. He also wore a leather jacket." She turned to the Doctor, "You know I kind of miss that leather jacket."

The Doctor leaned against the console and grinned, "It was pretty good wasn't it." His grin quickly turned to a frown, "My ears weren't that big."

Rose just gave him a pointed look that spoke volumes of her opinion on the ears.

Harry's lips twitched at their antics, "So I get the fancy starfish and his blue box. How did you get caught up in all this Rose?"

Both of them ignored the Doctor's indignant cry as Rose responded, "Oh all the plastic mannequins in the shop I worked in came to life and started killing people. Then the Doctor came rushing past, told me to run and blew up the shop. Later we found out all the plastic was being controlled by an alien race using the London Eye as a big transmitter." She gave a sort of half shrug, "They tried to kill us, we stopped them and then I joined the Doctor to travel the universe."

Harry stared. Well that was certainly different. He had no recollection of aliens invading London at any point in time and considering how long he had worked for the DoM he would probably know if it had happened.

"Is this a normal occurrence? The whole aliens on Earth thing." Maybe instead of magic this dimension had more aliens.

The Doctor replied from where he was fiddling with the central panel thing, "Oh yes. They show up all over the place. All throughout your history. As far back as you can go. Humans usually just dismiss it though. Convince themselves they never saw anything. You lot are pretty good at pretending nothing is unusual you know."

Harry huffed in amusement, "Now that I have no trouble believing. Somebody could come face to face with an actual dragon and convince themselves it never happened. Or it was some kind of movie prop or something equally absurd."

"Well there aren't dragons where we are going, but it's something just as spectacular." The Doctor pulled a lever and the TARDIS once again lurched into motion. Once the sound and movement died down, the Doctor strode up to the doors, "The city Atria on the planet Ivaldi. Atria is a hot spot of tourist resorts, well known for their cliff side beaches and," he pushed open the doors and stepped out, "dragons? Those look like dragons. Why are there dragons? They shouldn't be here. They shouldn't exist at all!"

While the Doctor started frantically waving around that metal wand, Harry should really ask what that was sometime, Harry and Rose stepped outside. He blinked. Well those did look a lot like dragons. There were six of them and they were flying around. Not a species he had ever seen before, but they did share certain similarities he supposed. He watched one spit out fire. Okay more than a few similarities then. He really should have known better than to mention dragons earlier. He had basically been asking for something like this to come up. Potter luck strikes again.

Rose had apparently gotten over her initial shock, "Doctor... What are those? They aren't actually dragons are they? Are we even in the right place?"

The Doctor flicked up the metal wand thing and seemed to be studying it, "Yes, this is definitely Atria, but the giant flying lizard things are not supposed to be here."

Rose rolled her eyes at the flummoxed man, "Well let's go ask some people then. I doubt that they would somehow not noticed the dragon things flying around their home after all."

The man grinned, "I always wanted to see a real dragon. Maybe we'll get to ride one! Come on Rose, why are you just standing around gawking?" He grabbed the girls hand and started pulling her away. Harry grinned at the duo and followed after them.

They turned out of the alleyway they had arrived in and Harry looked on in awe at their surroundings. He hadn't realized it until now, but the city they were in was surrounded on three sides by towering mountain peaks. Specifically the peaks. Somehow, and he couldn't fathom how it was done without magic, the entire city was suspended in the air between the mountains connected by what looked like massive bridges to each peak.

Even more breathtaking was when he understood what the Doctor had meant by cliff side beaches. Cascading down from ridge to plateaus all along the sides of the mountains where waterfalls and pools of soft crystalline water. It was a network of water that from a distance looked like somebody had draped a shimmering silver blue mesh of the finest fabrics over the mountains. The water fell below the city towards the ground which was lost to the eye covered in a blanket of mist.

In the fourth direction was the all encompassing sky. It was truly stunning and for the first time since he stepped into Diagon Alley when he was eleven, Harry felt he had entered a whole new world. He felt a soft laugh, tinged with relieved hysteria, bubble out him. He had been growing so tired in recent years. That this was something so utterly new was a balm to his soul.

§And we have lost them.§

Harry snapped out of his musings and turned to Mora with a raised brow.

She gave him a disgruntled look as if he had again missed the obvious, §The Time Healer and his companion Master. They are gone.§

Once her comment had sunk in he felt his eyes widen slightly. He quickly scanned the area and belatedly realized that the Doctor and Rose were nowhere in sight. With this came the realization that the city was also quite crowded. He sighed.

Addressing Mora he replied, §Well, there is little chance of finding them in this crowd. I suppose we might as well go see what we can discover and hopefully meet up with them again near the dragons.§

He glanced up to the dragon like creatures and figured they would have to land eventually. He could find the other two when they did.

"Doctor!"

The Doctor didn't hear her. He continued to drag her along through the crowds looking a bit like a kid in a candy store. His gaze was practically fixated on the flying dragon-like creatures above the city. It was impressive that he had yet to run into anything.

After a couple more attempts to grab his attention she had had enough. She grab the wrist of the hand holding her and dug her heels in. The Doctor jerked at her sudden halt and finally turned to look at her.

"Rose! Why are you stopping? There are dragons!" He pointed excitedly and practically bounced on the spot. Rose snorted. Thousand year old, all powerful time lord whining about not getting to the dragons sooner. It was just so very much like the man she couldn't really be annoyed about it. Besides he had a point, dragons were pretty amazing.

Regardless she gave him a stern look, "Doctor, we seem to be missing something important here."

The blank look he gave her made her want to face palm, "Harry and Mora? Remember them? The ones you kidnapped and are now missing."

"Ooooh them. I'm sure they'll be fine. If they run into any trouble Morena will be able to handle it. Good head on her shoulders that one. Well, if she had shoulders. I'm sure they'll turn up eventually. Nothing to worry over."

Rose wasn't even sure where to begin addressing everything that was wrong with that comment. Fortunately or unfortunately they were interrupted by the sounds of a commotion nearby. They automatically turned in the direction it was coming from and she felt the familiar thrum of excitement course through her at the prospect of another adventure.

They came up behind a gathered crowd. There seemed to be a divide with the larger half yelling angrily at a smaller collection of people. The smaller consisted of maybe eight or nine individuals who where banded together and standing their ground resolutely.

It only took a moment to understand that they were arguing over the dragons, she couldn't think of any other giant winged creatures that they might be referring to. She couldn't get close enough to hear everything that was being said, but she got the impression that the large group thought the dragons might be some kind of threat and wanted to do something about them while the smaller group was insisting that they should be left alone. Each group seemed to be congregated behind a pair of individuals who looked to be leading the argument.

She stole a glance at the Doctor who was watching the spectacle with a frown. She knew he didn't approve of such aggressive actions, but she couldn't say she was all that surprised. The tendency to view the unknown as a threat wasn't exclusive to humanity and seemed pretty common across the universe.

Everything about the Doctor felt so big and powerful. He was so clever and didn't need weapons to force his way. She wondered if he truly understood what it was to always feel small and easily wrong footed. For all he tried to understand it was moments like these where it really hit home that they were different species from different backgrounds.

She was pulled from her thoughts as they got close enough to hear properly.

"-very well be here for a good reason! They have yet to do anything to anybody. We should gather more facts before we take any drastic actions. There's historical evidence that this might not be the first time they've shown up. You can't just go around declaring everything new a threat! Just think of everything we could learn from this!"

The speaker was waving his hands around the air agitatedly. He was obviously worked up and had an air of exasperation like he had had this same argument many times over. From the unhappy yet non-threatening look of the man standing opposite him she guessed that at the very least the two knew each other.

The other man just kept frowning, "I've already given your group two weeks Typhan. The people are demanding answers or actions. They aren't comfortable with dangerous unknown creatures flying over the city. You have yet to produce any answers as to why and I can't in good conscious allow this to continue unchecked. Something is going to have to be done about those creatures."

The man, Typhan, spluttered for a moment, "You can't! The stories! This could be the first time they've appeared in centuries Lyral! You want to what? Shoot them down? They might be the key we need to get all the answers about this city that we don't understand!"

Angry yells erupted behind the other man, and he gave a put upon sigh, "Those same stories also tell of a great calamity that brought ruin to our home." He pointed upwards, "What if that destruction was brought by those creatures? We know that something happened, but all the records that could explain it have long since been destroyed by whatever event befell Atria centuries ago. We cannot risk it any longer. You've had your chance Typhan it's time we try something else."

With that the man spun on the spot and walked away. Typhan was left gaping at his retreating back seemingly unaware of the crowd slowly dispersing around him.

Rose walked up to the dejected man, "Hey. You all right? That looked like a pretty nasty argument."

The man seemed to slump into himself, "It's hardly the first time. He never seems to understand the importance of the research we do."

The Doctor casually strolled up to them, hands in pockets, "Oh I don't know he seems a decent bloke. Concerned about the wellbeing of others."

Typhan shot him a glare and snapped, "I know that. I don't want anyone to get hurt either, but sometimes if we don't take risks and find out the truth of the matter then we are just opening ourselves up to problems coming back to haunt us later. He is always going on about the situation in the moment and doesn't comprehend how our research could help long term."

He narrowed his eyes, "Who are you two anyway? I don't recognize you. I don't have time to argue with a couple of tourists."

Without even waiting for a response he turned to leave, but the Doctor halted him and held out his psychic paper.

"I'm from a small group who wants to study the native fauna and wildlife." He gestured to Rose, "She is too. We're more a club really. We travel around and just recently arrived in Atria, but we want to help. Seems to me you could use all the help you could get."

The man eyed them suspiciously a moment, but quickly deflated. "Fine. Follow me then. I need to go meet up with the others and warn them that Lyral has stuck his nose into things again."

He turned away from them and started off at a brisk pace. They quickly followed and Rose looked around the city as they passed by. It was a lively city, but there wasn't an abundance of technology from what she could tell. The people looked human enough that her and the Doctor didn't stand out which was probably good because she didn't see anything that would indicate space travel. She'd ask the Doctor about it when they were alone again.

"What is that?"

Her gaze followed the Doctor's pointed hand at his question. She wasn't sure what she was looking at. They had arrived at what she guessed was the center of the floating island. However, if she hadn't known that they had been walking deeper into the city she would had thought they had left it entirely. Where the center of a vast city should lie, was instead a very large open grassy area and right in the middle of the grassy plane was a massive stone plateau rising up out of the ground. It wasn't terribly tall. Probably only as tall as the average person, but it seemed to stretch out into what she could only guess was a big circle. Why would a city leave such a big empty area right in the heart of it?

Typhan answered the Doctor's question, "This area is locally referred to as The Nest. It's located right in the middle of the island Atria is sitting on and the city actually surrounds it on all sides. It's a popular spot for picnics and local functions and the like. We tend not to bring tourists here and they don't often come across it as they all stay around the edges of the city for the view of the waterfalls so it's remained something of a local secret."

He gestured around a bit and his nature as a researching shone through. The man continued on growing increasingly enthusiastic as he spoke, "We don't actually know what the stone disc in the middle is there for. It predates all our records. It's not flat even though it looks it from the ground. If you climb up on top of it you'll find that it dips down towards its center like a shallow dish. There's also openings at regular intervals on the sides with small interconnecting tunnels that run under the whole thing. Unfortunately, any records that could have told us what it was built for were likely destroyed in The Calamity."

By this point they had reached the stone disc and were following around it's edge. Rose noted the regularly spaced openings Typhan had told them about and wondered why they were there. She was amused to find the Doctor eagerly scanning the area with his sonic screwdriver and fell back a bit so she could talk to him without being overheard by their guide.

"Have you discovered anything Doctor?"

The Doctor raised his sonic and peered at them through his spectacles, "Nothing. Well I did find that these stones are made out of rocks. Just your normal everyday, boring rocks. Can be found anywhere those rocks. Nothing abnormal about them at all."

Rose huffed a laugh. The man was practically pouting over the lack of unusual findings. She linked up arms with him again and pointed upwards, "Cheer up now. Boring rocks or not, don't forget there are still dragons flying about Doctor!"

The Doctor visibly brightened at the reminder, "Hurry up Rose! There are dragons to meet!" He scoffed lightly, "I can't believe you forgot the dragons. You silly humans."

Rose shook her head in amusement and kindly didn't point out that she wasn't the one to forget about the dragons. Instead, she sped up to match the Doctor's pace as they moved to catch back up to their guide.

Harry was standing at the edge of the city peering down into the mist below. He and Mora had wandered around viewing the various stores and buildings while making polite inquiries regarding the reptilian creatures flying overhead.

He had discovered that they just appeared one day. No warning whatsoever. One day there was nothing and the next they were flying above the city in the complicated dance he could see them performing now. Nobody could explain it and there was much debate about what to do about them if anything. So far they hadn't caused any problems, but some folks seemed wary especially with their size and ability to spout fire.

He had encountered more than a few people who suspected it was some act of aggression from another city. Being such a large tourist attraction they received a lot of attention for better or worse. Those accusations had the ring of conspiracy theorists, but it was never a good idea to completely discount them.

Other's thought in a similar vain, but they suspected the dragons were a gift instead of a weapon. They fully embraced the new members as another attractive feature to their home and harbored nothing more than innocent curiosity towards the creatures.

He had even heard one old man describe them as avatars of the gods of old. That they were performing a ritual dance to judge the people of the city. If they should be found wanting the creatures would descend and exert their wrath. If they were found worthy they would give their blessing and depart, going dormant again for the next few centuries until judgement was called once more.

Maybe it was his history with old myths proving somewhat true, but this last opinion appealed to him. He had tracked down some history books and children's tales and discovered that the old man's tale had many similarities to the local lore he had unearthed.

It was this train of thought that had led him here to the edge. If the dragons had appeared before then it stood to reason that they had always been on the planet. The first place he had thought of had been to look downwards to the impenetrable mists obscuring his sight of the ground.

§You are thinking of going down there aren't you?§ said a resigned voice.

He shot a grin to his familiar, §You know me too well Mora. I admit I am curious what is down there. I feel it is more than mere mist and an empty valley.§

She poked her head over the edge and looked downwards before dryly replying, §A suspicious, mysterious and eerie hole that leads to an unknown location that may or may not house giant fire-breathing reptiles who could swallow us whole. Yes mere curiosity obviously justifies going down there.§

She continued halfheartedly, §Just because we cannot die does not mean I am eager to find out what being eaten feels like. Are you sure you want to do this?§

He didn't bother answering. He looked around to make sure they were alone and took a shrunken trunk from his necklace. He rummaged around it a moment before pulling out his broom in triumph. He replaced his trunk and hopped on. It had really been too long since he had last gotten to fly. Once he was certain Mora was secure, he activated the magic of the cloak to make them invisible and kicked off the ground.

He took a moment to relish the feel of the wind as they rose before he turned into a sharp dive and plummeted downwards to mist below.

He slowed his speed some when they hit the mist. He couldn't see well enough to avoid obstacles should any appear. As he drifted downwards, he became aware of a gradual increase in temperature. He huffed a laugh when he heard the contented hiss Mora gave at the warmth.

Eventually he was forced to throw a cooling charm on himself. It was getting uncomfortably hot and he had the startling realization that the mist was actually steam that had cooled and condensed into fog. The water cascading down from the mountainsides must hit this heat and evaporate. Which explained the mist barrier.

Not too long after this realization he broke below the majority of evaporation and stared at what he saw below.

Mora peered downwards equally stunned. They simply gaped in shocked silence for a few minutes. It was Mora that got her voice back first, §This explains why the city isn't built in the valley...§

Harry gave an incredulous laugh, §That doesn't explain why they built it all the way up there though. Why would anyone even think to build a city here in the first place?§

They both looked again at the sight below them. As many answers as this provided there were many more questions it created.

Mora's head followed the progress of a few creatures moving around, §At least we know where the dragons came from. Although I don't know why none of these have wings.§

Harry huffed at the understatement. Looking down he could see what appeared to be a few dozen wingless versions of the creatures currently flying over the city. He could only assume there were even more out of sight. They looked well established already so he figured they were native and had always lived below the city. Thinking on their habitat he started to get an idea where the legends of gods might have originated from.

§Mora, we should probably get back and inform the Doctor. I have some hunches, but he's more likely to understand what's going on here.§

Mora, who had yet to take her eyes off the sight below them merely nodded and tightened her grip on him. Harry pulled at the handle of his broom and started to fly back up towards the city.

Led by Typhan, Rose and the Doctor came upon a cluster of temporary pavilions and tables set up to the edge of the stone disc. A small crowd of people were clustered around talking animatedly and rummaging through books and papers. A few others were staring upwards and marking things off on clipboards. Rose decided that they were Typhan's fellow researchers and that they were out there to better observe the dragons.

A few of them looked up and gave Typhan nods before going back to what they were working on. They made their way over to a smaller table with just one person sitting at it. Typhan slumped in a chair and absently waved for Rose and the Doctor to sit themselves. He looked tired.

"Please tell me somebody has figured something out?"

The other man at the table didn't look up from his reading, "No, nothing has changed. They are still flying up there as before. No sign of leaving or landing from what we can see."

The Doctor had grabbed one of the books on the table and was flipping through it. Rose leaned over to look. Her eyebrows shot up.

"Why books on myths?"

Typhan glanced at the book the Doctor was still flipping through and elaborated, "Something happened a couple of centuries ago that wiped out the city. We aren't sure what as almost everything was destroyed including all written records. The city was only rebuilt some years later when some explorers discovered the suspended island and the ruins. One of the only remaining things was that stone circle. Most people refer to the event as simply The Calamity."

"The myths you're reading actually come from stories passed on in nearby villages, but they are our best clues as to what things were like before we settled here. There's one in particular that talks of flying gods of judgement that appear asses the people. Should the people appease the gods then many years of prosperity are said to follow. If not then supposedly they will call down the next calamity."

Typhan gained an air of agitation as he continued, "Some people have drawn parallels between our flying friends and these supposed gods. They are frightened and believe that if we do not show our worth we will be punished. Not that they have any useful suggestions about how to show said worth. They are just running around getting everyone else worked up and causing general panic. The fools."

The Doctor gave the man a piercing stare, "Many myths hold truth to them. You shouldn't dismiss them so easily."

Typhan gave a short, bitter laugh, "Oh I know, but they also hold just as much fiction. Instead of trying to figure out why this is happening they are jumping to conclusions and demanding for action."

The Doctor stood up again, "My friend and I are going to go look around now. We'll be around. I'll call you if I need anything."

They wandered off towards the stone wall. The Doctor walked over to one of the openings and started waving his sonic around it. Rose decided to leave him to it. She grabbed the upper edge of the wall and pulled herself up. From up here should could see why Typhan had described it as a dish. It was a big concave circle. She also realized it was rather large. Probably ten meters in diameter.

"Doctor why would somebody build a big stone dish thing in the middle of a city? I just can't see this as being decorative."

"Not sure. The stones in this opening are smoother and coated in ash. It's like there were prolonged fires in here."

She looked over the edge incredulously, "Are you saying they baked a giant loaf of bread on this Doctor?"

He looked up, an impish smile lighting his face, "Maybe not a loaf of bread, but I would be interested in a delux sized pizza. We could get some diadulle sausage for a topping. Nothing better than diadulle"

Rose was wondering what a diadulle was when everything lurched and she was knocked down as the earth trembled. With nothing to cling to she just sprawled out and waited for it to stop.

When things had calmed again a few minutes later she heard the Doctor call her name. She picked herself up and patted herself over. Nothing broken.

"I'm all right. Doctor what was that?"

He frowned as he looked at some readings from his sonic, "Some kind of earthquake, but I'm not sure what caused it since we are suspended way up here. He looked up at the still flying creatures. Something is going on and I think our friends up there know what it is."

She looked out across the open grassy area and her eye was caught by an approaching group led by Lyral. "Doctor I think we might have a problem. That group from earlier is headed this way and they don't look happy."

She had been right. That group had stormed into the pavilion demanding answers about the quakes. There had been a couple more incidents of shaking since the first and tempers were flaring all around. People were panicking and many were trying to pin the blame on the flying creatures. Others were crying out about the warnings for their angering of the gods. In short, nobody knew what was happening.

Rose was getting upset. These stubborn idiots weren't listening to her. It didn't help that the Doctor was off doing who knows what. Even when she tried to talk to him he just distractedly mumbled about giant pizzas.

She was practically yelling in her frustration, "The earthquakes aren't because of those creatures! That doesn't make any sense! Why would they only start now when they've been up there for days already? There has to be another reason for it."

"They are happening because this city is located right above a volcano."

The voice was quiet, but it cut through the bedlam with ease. Everyone fell silent and turned to the new voice. Casually standing before them as if he belonged nowhere else was Harry. Rose spotted Mora in her usual place around his shoulders. Green eyes scanned the group dismissively and Rose wondered at his ease under all their scrutiny.

He continued on as if he was talking about the weather, "This city is situated right above an active volcano that's going to erupt soon." He nodded upwards at the dragons, "They didn't bring the changes with them. They are just another symptom resulting from the volcano acting up again."

A pause and then an outburst as everyone tried to talk at once. Angry yells of disbelief and fear driven cries of denial erupted all around. Green eyes hardened at the spectacle and in that moment Rose was forcibly reminded of the Doctor. Something about those knowing, old eyes had her drawing comparisons between them.

Though at the same time Harry was different. The Doctor when he was angry was like an unstoppable force of nature. He moved forward and bowled down anything that dared stand in his path. He was the raging storm.

Harry on the other hand carried himself with a calm authority. He was just standing there waiting. It was as if he was merely watching a toddler throw a tantrum. He watched the mayhem like he knew that no matter how much they screamed and cried and fussed that they would eventually wear themselves out. There was something like inevitability in that unwavering green gaze.

Wear themselves out they did. One by one they eventually all fell silent again under that intense scrutiny. To her amusement, some of them were even shifting around like guilty children.

When all was quiet, Harry continued on as if nothing had interrupted him, "Those creatures actually live down deep in the mountain near the heart of the volcano. Typically they would have no reason to come up here. In fact most of them do not have wings, which is why you did not know of their existence."

Rose thought about it a moment, "If they don't have wings then why do those six? Why are they here now of all times?"

Harry's eyes flashed approval at her question, "I suspect they are here now because the volcano has gone active once again. The heat is obviously not an issue, but the smoke and moving lava undoubtedly endangers their species. The wings are probably a natural survival mechanism that only a few in each generation have so that they can fly out of harms way and repopulate should the need arise."

Lyral blanched, "Are you telling me that we are situated above an active volcano that is about to erupt?! That this is the cause of the calamity from all those years ago?"

Harry shrugged in his uncertainty, "I'm not really sure. I don't know why anyone would build a city up here if it was just going to get wiped out each time the volcano erupted. I think there is something we are missing."

After that statement, quiet murmuring started up as they all tried to work out what was happening.

Eventually, Harry pulled himself away from a group of people who had been questioning him. He looked around before turning to Rose, "Where is the Doctor?"

Rose responded exasperatedly, "He was just here. He had one of his revelations and dragged Typhan outside without explaining anything. He just said something about fireplaces and bolted off."

Harry chuckled, "Maybe we should track him down then. Mora think you could find him for us?"

The snake lifted her head a bit and tasted the air. She hissed something to Harry and he nodded in understanding.

"Well it seems he went this way. Let's go track down the overgrown starfish then."

Rose snorted at the Doctor's new nickname and followed after the pair. A confused Lyral leading a slightly panicked crowd following in their wake.

It didn't take long to find the wayward Time Lord. They hadn't wandered off all that far. Harry found him and another man, who Harry assumed was the Typhan that Rose had mentioned, just a little ways away by one of the holes in the stone wall thing.

The Doctor glanced up at their approach and beamed at them, "Morena! You brought everyone! Perfect! I knew you would come through." He clapped his hands together, "Now I need everyone to go collect firewood. Lots and lots of firewood. We need to get these fires going so the dragons can land!"

Harry blinked at the odd instructions and the man's enthusiasm. Forget cities built over volcanos and dragons, the Doctor was by far the stranger phenomenon here.

Rose's suspicious voice interjected, "Doctor, just why are you going to start fires? You're not allowed to burn down the city just because you think it will attract the dragons."

At least Harry wasn't the only one wary of the gleam in the man's eye. He could easily admit that he was concerned when the Doctor just pointed the the opening in the rock wall.

The Doctor was practically bouncing in his excitement by this point as he picked up the explanation, "They are fireplaces! Each of them. This place isn't called The Nest because somebody thought it sounded nice. It's called the nest because that's exactly what it is!"

He was almost gushing as he rambled on, "It's a nest for the dragons! The holes are fireplaces so that people can help keep it warm for the eggs of course. The tunnels are for the hot air to travel and heat up the whole thing evenly."

Typhan was in league with the Doctor in his excitement, "We finally have the proof that they have been here before! A piece of our history rediscovered!"

Apparently Lyral had had enough, "Why should we light those fires? For all we know inviting them down here is just asking for trouble. I won't endanger the people just so you can get up close and personal to your beloved pets Typhan! Do not forget that the reason that history is missing is because of The Calamity which those things seem to be a part of!"

As yet another argument broke out, Harry and Rose wandered over to where the Doctor had migrated to the side after his outburst. The man was staring intently at the fireplace lost in thought.

Rose seemed frustrated as she said, "You know Doctor I find myself doubting that people would go to all this trouble to make a habitable spot for the dragons to nest if they had any reason to believe they would be a danger to them."

Another rumble of the ground. They were growing worrisomely more frequent. Harry couldn't resist dryly replying, "Then again these would be the same people that built a city above a volcano so who knows. Maybe they just had an unhealthy obsession with fire."

The Doctor was still lost in thought spouting out a constant stream of ramblings, "Why would people go to such effort to build a nest? A nest right in the very center of their city. There has to be some purpose behind it. Not just a comfortable spot away from everyone, but right in the middle. A city built over a volcano..."

His eyes widened as something clicked in his head. Harry watched as he stood up and rushed over to the still arguing Typhan and Lyral.

"We have to light the fires."

Lyral turned his angry glare onto the Doctor, but the man didn't give him a chance, "Why would a people build a nest for flying, fire breathing creatures who live in a volcano right in the very center of the city? Unless it served a purpose. It's symbiotic. The dragons get a safe place to have their eggs and continue their species. A nest that they will protect from danger. They can't stay below in the volcano while it erupts, they would either drown in the lava or suffocate in the smoke."

"So they breed a super generation not unlike some butterflies do. A special generation capable of flying so that they can come up above the mist barrier that blocks the majority of the poison smoke and nest here. They don't go too far because they still need heat though. That leaves the lava as being a problem. The mist barrier can't be enough to stop it so there must be something else. They probably circle until after the initial eruption then pick a warm place that they can protect to nest in."

"Who would build a city above an active volcano unless they were sure it they wouldn't be in danger from it? Why build a heatable nest right in the middle of the city to lure in dragons who spawn a super generation that should be capable of protecting themselves from that very threat?"

Typhan caught on first. He breathed out in awe, "The creatures protect the city. Whatever it is they do is enough to protect the city too. That's why they are in the center. So everything is reached. So they heat the nest to trick the dragons into landing early and protecting them. Brilliant."

Lyral looked a bit overwhelmed, "Then what caused the calamity?"

Harry had worked it out by this point so he decided to clarify, "They must not have lured the dragons to the nest. Right now they are circling probably looking for the best place to land. The heated rocks would have been an attractive spot for them. Similar to their natural habitat. If the fires weren't lit the city was probably left exposed during the eruption."

Another rumble broke them out of their reverie. Rose looked wary, "Doctor how long before it erupts?"

A grim look met her eyes, "Under two hours. If the rocks are going to be heated in time for them to land here then we better light these fires quickly."

At that Lyral snapped out of it and took charge. He urgently and efficiently started directing people to quickly collect the wood and start lightly fires. Unfortunately in order to hold half a dozen dragons and their offspring, the rocky area was very large and had many openings for proportionally large fires. Even with the tunnels connecting the fireplaces and running under the stone nest to distribute heat, it would be a close thing. The constant shaking was not making matters any easier.

Harry rushed around using his magic discreetly where he could, but he was growing concerned. How did the dragons protect the land and how long did it take before that protection was in place? The rocks were heating rapidly, but they were running out of time.

He looked at Mora. She saw his look and sighed, §You are about to do something stupidly reckless aren't you?§

He just grinned unabashedly, §I'm going to leave you here with a listening charm. I'll see what I can do to prolong the eruption. I need you to tell me when it's safe to let it go.§

Her exasperation turned to alarm, §Master not even you can think to stop a volcano. I do not want to find out if you can grow back from being burnt to nothing.§

§I'm not trying to stop it. Just delay it. I'll put up personal wards I promise.§

§I do not like this Master, but I know better than to try and stop you. The Keeper of Knowledge was right about your saving people thing.§

Harry just laughed at her comment as he found Rose where she was helping to direct people, "Can you hold onto Mora for me? She's complaining that I keep getting her too close to the fires."

He noticed how the Doctor glanced at him as he handed Mora off to Rose, but the man said nothing so Harry hurried off to find somewhere out of sight the apparate from. Mora's grumblings about idiotic master's came in a constant stream over the listening charm as he went.

He appeared on a ledge he had noted when they had ventured to the volcano floor earlier. He quickly set up some wards around him to keep the air clear and block out the heat and sulfur. Then he closed his eyes and concentrated.

The hollows merging with him had a few perks. One had been a closer connection to both his magic and the world around him. He felt out the volcano and felt how very near it was to erupting. He slowly spread his magic over it like a cap and focused on reinforcing it. Once it erupted, he would only be able to hold it a few minutes before the pressure build up was too great and the magic would shatter. He just hoped those few minutes would be enough.

A small part of him registered Mora telling him that the dragons had landed and they were doing something. He felt some kind of energy start to build above him, but could not afford to split his focus to find out more about it. The volcano was reaching a crescendo and with only a spike of warning it erupted.

The initial wave hitting against his barrier was almost overwhelming enough to shock him into distraction, but he steeled his will and held it. The pressure of the lava, smoke and air was a constant drain on his reserves and stamina, but he stubbornly held on. Finally just as exhaustion was threatening to win Mora told him they were ready. He dropped the magic and apparated as fast as he could to the only image he could recall clearly at the moment.

The Doctor wasn't surprised later that night when he came across a sleeping and slightly singed Harry slumped against the TARDIS door. Actually he was very surprised at the state of the young man, but he wasn't surprised at the proof that Harry had obviously done...something. That he had no idea what Harry could have possibly done though was baffling.

He knew that the volcano should have erupted before it actually did. It was very suspicious that nothing had happened until right when the dragons had finished placing their protection. Harry was a human. There should have been absolutely nothing he could have done alone that would have delayed the volcano. Yet everything pointed to Harry having done just that.

It was fascinating. Every time he thought he had figured a piece of the mystery out, he was presented with another part of he puzzle. Except it was as if he had been working a jigsaw this whole time and the new piece was instead a crossword clue. Nothing fit together and he was having a great time trying to work it all out.

He waved his sonic and almost pouted at the unchanging results. Excluding the signs of exhaustion, the readings still showed him as completely human. He shrugged and pick up a nearby stick. Then he crouched down and started prodding the boy with it.

He watched as Harry groggily roused from his sleep. He blinked a few times and green eyes slowly focused on the Doctor. Then his gaze traveled to the stick the Doctor was still poking him with.

Harry deadpanned, "You are actually poking me with a stick to see if I'm still alive? I feel touched by the show of concern Doctor."

The Doctor beamed at him and kept up his poking. When Harry batted the stick away he mock pouted. Harry just huffed in amusement not buying the act for a second.

He paid close attention as Harry slowly maneuvered himself back to his feet. It was apparent that the boy had found himself in similar situations before as he carefully stood with slow practiced movements. Another puzzle piece.

He remained quiet as Harry finally stood and leaned against the TARDIS. The boy took a moment to orient himself and shake off the after effects of extreme exhaustion.

Sharp green eyes focused on him, "How long has it been?"

A nonchalant shrug, "Around three hours. Rose sent me for a change of clothes. She insisted we stay the night so she could look at the dragons in the daytime when things were less hectic."

He started to move inside the TARDIS, but caught the knowing look sent his way, "Rose wanted to stay is it? I'm sure you were very reluctant and I must have imagined you practically skipping off jubilantly at the idea of meeting real dragons?"

The Doctor just smiled, but said nothing as he went inside to grab the clothes. Harry didn't follow him in. Just leaned against a wall and waited. It was the only outward sign he exhibited of what the Doctor knew was extreme fatigue. They slowly made their way back in companionable, if uncharacteristic for the Doctor, silence. The Doctor busied himself with churning through ideas of what the other had done to stop the lava. He suspected Harry knew what he was thinking when tired green eyes met his and glinted mischievously in the low light.

The next day found the two of them back by the dragon nest. A schedule had apparently been established to keep the fires lit and the dragons looked content with their situation.

Now that he could see them up close Harry was able to catalogue the difference between these reptiles and the dragons from his home world. These were smaller for one. They looked more like drakes with wings then dragons which actually made some sense. He didn't feel any magic coming off of them which had made him ask what the dragons had done to protect the island.

The Doctor's response had been utterly confusing and he was convinced that half the words had been made up. Luckily for him Rose had some practice translating the Time Lord's verbiage and had summed it up as something along the lines of the six of them sharing a joint psychic connection. They were apparently able to manifest it in such a way as to stir up a massive air column that redirected the lava to the mountain peaks. That in turn explained why it looked like the city was situated between three mountains and not in the middle of a single volcano. Over the years the lava had built up enough to create separate peaks. At least that's how Rose understood it.

He walked up to where the Doctor was standing as close as he could to one of the dragons that had decided to walk around the open area and explore. Rose was off with Mora buying souvenirs for her mum and somebody name Mickey.

He looked into intelligent amber eyes and a memory of his third year sprung to mind. He couldn't resist the temptation so he walked closer to the creature and bowed. After an assessing moment he received a bow in return and delightedly went up and started petting the brilliant scales.

He cackled inwardly at the utterly dumbfounded expression the Doctor was sporting. Eyes twinkling he leaned over to whisper a request to the beautiful drake. Upon a nod of confirmation he turned back to the other man, "Hey Doctor. I think I heard you mention earlier how you wanted to try and fly on the back of a dragon?"

That was all the prompting needed. He heard what was decidedly a squeal of excitement, no denials from the man later would convince him otherwise, and he swore the Doctor teleported to their side. They both climbed on when prompted and were shortly off with a flapping of wings and a rush of air. Laughing jubilantly Harry was glad he had fallen into company with this mad man and his blue box. At the very least things would no longer be boring.