Chapter 64: Horns and a Homecoming

The recent chaos, capped off by his boisterous wrestling match with Ophelia, had left Aiden utterly drained. Too much had happened. He decided then and there to give himself a proper holiday—to just be a normal young wizard enjoying his summer.

He collapsed onto his bed and, without a single thought, fell into a deep and dreamless sleep.

The next morning, Aiden woke slowly, luxuriating in the rare chance to stay wrapped in his warm blankets. He stretched with a lazy yawn.

"Ahhh... that's better."

He felt a faint, persistent itch on his scalp and shook his head, dismissing it. After washing up, he made his way to the dining table where Sibby had already laid out a full breakfast.

"Morning, Sibby," Aiden said. "You don't have to prepare my meals today. I'm going to be staying at The Burrow for a while."

"Oh, very good, Young Master," Sibby replied with a shy smile. "And if I may say, Young Master, your headdress is very handsome."

"Headdress? What headdress?"

A cold dread washed over him. He slowly reached up and ran a hand through his hair. His fingers brushed against two hard, unfamiliar points right where the itching had been.

"!!!"

All traces of sleepiness vanished. Aiden shot up from the table and scrambled to the nearest mirror.

Staring back at him was his own reflection, a face that was almost unnervingly perfect, like a carefully rendered painting. But sprouting from his pure white hair were two small, sharp horns, the color of polished jet.

"Well, I am ridiculously good-looking... Wait, no. Why do I have horns?!"

A familiar voice chimed in his mind.

[Ding. High-intensity combat combined with deep-level immersion in the Deep Realm has resulted in a further activation of the host's draconic bloodline.]

'I swear, I'm going to turn into an actual dragon at this rate. System, is there any way to reverse this?' he pleaded.

**[Ding. Negative. The following options are available:

Utilize concealment spells.

Wear a wizarding hat.

Utilize mental abilities to hide within a target's perceptual blind spot.

Ask Rubeus Hagrid if he is interested in raising a dragon-person.]**

'Shut up,' Aiden grumbled.

After a great deal of frustrated effort, Aiden left the house wearing a black, pointed wizard's hat pulled down low over his brow.

He first stopped at Gringotts, where the goblins were more than happy to exchange a hefty sum of Galleons for Muggle currency. From there, a quick spatial jump brought him to Knightsbridge in London. He spent the next several hours on a massive shopping spree at Harrods, picking out gifts for the Weasleys.

Laden with bags, he finally returned to The Burrow.

"Oh, Aiden, welcome back!" Molly greeted him with a warm, bustling hug. "My goodness, look at all these things! Did you have a good time visiting your classmate?"

"Of course, Aunt Molly," Aiden said, forcing a smile. "I was welcomed very warmly."

Ron, who had already materialized and was happily tearing into a bag of sweets Aiden had brought, spoke up with his mouth full. "Mum was worried sick the whole time you were gone."

"Oh, Aunt Molly, I'm so sorry to have made you worry," Aiden said sincerely.

"Well, you're back now, so that's all that matters," she said, her expression softening. She then frowned. "It's so stuffy in here, dear. Why are you still wearing that hat? Take it off and get comfortable."

Aiden froze, the simple request hitting him with the force of a physical blow. He knew he was caught. He could lie, but he couldn't bring himself to do it.

"Aunt Molly… something… unusual happened to me."

His stammering was all it took. Molly Weasley was a veteran of the wizarding world; she knew when something was amiss. Her expression shifted, her warm smile replaced by a calm that was far more terrifying than any shouting.

"Ron, go to your room. Now."

Seeing that look on his mother's face, Ron's eyes went wide. He scooped up his snacks and, ignoring Aiden's pleading gaze, gave him a look that clearly said, 'You're on your own,' before scurrying up the stairs.

"Alright, dear," Molly said, her voice dangerously quiet. "Take off the hat. Let me see."

Resigned, Aiden slowly removed his hat, revealing the two small, sharp horns.

Molly stared in silence for a long moment. Then, her voice erupted, a roar that shook the entire house.

"AIDEN PREWETT! HOW DARE YOU! WHERE IN MERLIN'S NAME HAVE YOU BEEN TO GET INTO A BATTLE LIKE THAT?!"

Upstairs, George, Fred, Ginny, and Ron were pressed against the floorboards, listening with rapt attention.

"Honestly, a pair of horns is actually pretty cool," Ron whispered to Ginny.

"Do you think Aiden was protecting Harry?" Ginny breathed, her eyes shining. "Only the Boy-Who-Lived gets into that many fights." Her brothers just stared at her, speechless.

Downstairs, Aiden tried to explain. "Aunt, please, listen to me! I really did go to see a classmate, but there was an accident, and Kingsport—"

He was cut off as Molly seized on the key word.

"Kingsport?!" she shrieked. "You stepped into that Dark Wizard's ritual site? By Merlin's beard, do you have any idea how dangerous that was?" Her tirade continued. "Your father entrusted you to me! You are the last of the Prewett bloodline! If something had happened to you, how could I ever face him again?"

Her fury finally broke, and she began to sob, her shoulders shaking.

"Oh, Aunt Molly, I'm so sorry," Aiden said, his heart aching. He gently placed a hand on her arm, projecting a wave of calming reassurance. "It's my fault. Please, don't be sad."

He softened his voice. "My classmate… he lived in Kingsport. His father was sacrificed in the disaster. I've been… restricted… from saying too much more."

The change was instantaneous. Molly's tears stopped. She straightened up, her expression shifting from heartbroken to sharply analytical.

"Restricted?" she asked, her eyes narrowed. "Don't say anything. Let me guess. An Unbreakable Vow? No. A Blood Pact? Possible. A contract…?"

Aiden focused, keeping his face a perfect mask, revealing nothing.

"A contract," she concluded, her voice firm. "Involving an incident of that scale… with that level of impact… The Silencers. Am I right?"

Aiden stared at her, dumbfounded. 'How did she guess that?!'

Her eyes, now sharp as a hawk's, met his. "A witch's intuition, dear. Besides, contracts aren't absolute, and with your abilities, you don't need to keep such a straight face. The old families know things. We remember the time before the Ministry centralized everything, when research was divided among different factions."

She sighed, a hint of ancient history in her voice. "Many families, the Prewetts included, have records. We know that the faction that studied the mind eventually became the Silencers. Our family even contributed to the construction of the Silencing Stone Tablets."

She waved a dismissive hand. "I won't ask for the details. But if you ever do something so reckless again, I will tan your hide so thoroughly you won't be able to sit for a month. Do you understand me?"

"I won't! I swear!" Aiden pleaded. "I was dragged into it! Ask Dumbledore if you don't believe me!"

"We'll see about that," she sniffed. Her gaze fell back to his head. "Now, what are we going to do about your horns?" She glanced at them again, a curious glint in her eye, as if she were fighting the urge to reach out and touch one.

"I'll just keep them covered with the hat for now," Aiden explained. "The rest of the time, I can use my abilities to hide them in people's blind spots. It shouldn't be too much of a problem, Aunt Molly."

***********

✨ 300 gems = 1 bonus chapter

✨ 500 gems = another bonus chapter

Get access to advanced chapters at my P@treon.

p@treon.com/meowthtl