章 330: Night Whispers

Flags were waving all over the place as the English national anthem was being blared from all sides. The nymphs seemed rather forlorn as the fairies twinkled happily in the night sky in the form of fireworks. It was quite lovely to watch actually.

The Norwegian Prime Minister seemed quite cheerful despite the loss. He would be taking the cure for lycanthropy back home and that was much more important than a mere Quidditch Cup. After all, they would have plenty of chances the next time around.

The English team flew an honorary lap around the stadium along with the team mascot, before the World Cup is brought into the Top Box. There is a sudden dazzling blinding light as the Top Box is magically illuminated as everyone's eyes are on them. Rowan is momentarily glad she is wearing the earplug as Severus grows rather stiff against her.

Two panting wizards carried in a vast golden cup, which was carefully handed over to the stout female witch, Minister Eugenia Jenkins. "Let's have a really loud hand for the gallant – Norwegians!" The Head of the Department cried out. The crowd wildly cheered as it had most certainly been an impressive blood-pumping match.

One by one the Norwegian players file into the rows of seats as they are called one by one up as the two Ministers of Magic shake their hands. Helberg looked a bit bad with a bruise on his cheek, but he looked right proud. With a stiff upper lip, he bowed as the entire crowd cheered his name.

And then came the English team led by their captain, McLaggen. The English seeker, Eric Davis was being supported by Ludo Bagman and Anna Taylor, Davis's chaser girlfriend. After the second crash, his leg had been badly sprained, but he still had a grin on his face. With the aid of his teammates, he lifted the cup into the air as the crowd thundered in approval. Even Rowan clapped given the fact that Davis had turned the tables despite the odds being against them. And the fact that everyone was staring at the Top Box.

After the English team let to perform another honorary lap, the Head of the Department pointed his wand at his throat and said, "Quietus."

"They'll be talking about this one for years," Amundsen hoarsely said. With a skip in his step, he shook the minister's hand before hurrying off. He had some earnings to collect.

Reginald made sure to exit the top box first with the children and his sister in tow. All too soon they caught up with the crowds now flooding out of the stadium and back to their campsites. Raucous singing was borne on the night air as they retraced their steps along the lantern-lit path, with fairies shooting over their heads and whirling about in amazing shapes.

Tired and sleepy, the four Prince family members promptly went to bed after a quick brushing of their teeth. Thankfully, the tent had soundproof protection or else they might not be able to sleep given the noise outside. And sleep quickly came upon them in their soft beds.

It was dark and misty outside when Rowan awoke to a gentle whisper that hissed, "Come."

Thinking it was a dream, Rowan closed her eyes again, when she heard the female voice whisper in her mind again, "Come child of the infamous snake speaker, I promise not to harm you."

Peering into the dark, Rowan slips out of the bed as she puts on her shoes. Wrapping her night robe around her she firmly held her wand, before teleporting away to the source of the whispers. It was an instinct really as she teleported to the edge of the marsh.

The marsh glowed an eerie green under the misty moonlight. The shadows were long and thick and the silence heavy. There weren't the usual chirps of night crickets nor the sound of croaking frogs. The marsh was utterly and completely silent. Something large and heavy moved within the swamp towards her.

The only sign was the ripples across the marsh waters that grew thicker and thicker by the minute. A large, giant black shape appears in the mist before finally coming to a halt high above her. When in comparison to the basilisk of Hogwarts, it was rather small compared to this creature which easily was larger than 100 feet long.

The giant creature snorts as the mist around it blows away to reveal its true form in the moonlight. Its glittering pale white scales glowed under the moonlight as a bright blue gemstone on its forehead began to sparkle and gently light the area around it. On top of its head great large horns curve slightly back revealing its species, a Great Horned Serpent also known as the snake from the legend Quetzalcoatl.

The rare albino Great Horned Serpent slowly lowers its head more to Rowan's eye level as its blue snake-slit eyes easily reflect the entire form of Rowan in them. The Great Horned Serpent, unlike a basilisk, was not venomous and tended to keep to itself. It primarily lived in bodies of water such as the great lakes area of North America to the marshy jungles of South America. Even the natives of those lands, including non-wizards revered the shy, majestic creatures.

"Wizarding child, I have a favor for which to ask of you snake speaker," the Great Horned Serpent gently asked.

"If it will bring no harm to others and if it is in my power to do so, I shall," Rowan replied.

The Great Horned Serpent slowly turns as its giant tail comes forward cradling a large, glowing cream-colored egg. "My daughter will not be born for many months more, but I have seen her fate. She is to become the guardian of the black lake high in the northern highlands where the wizarding children reside for many months out of the year."

The Great Horned Serpent paused in her statement and turned her large sapphire eyes onto Rowan. "Snake Speaker, will you care for and protect my child and deliver her to her new home?"

"I will," Rowan sincerely promised as truthfully it was no great favor. She'd been worried all for naught.

"You will not be my daughter's master, snake speaker, only a friend if she chooses to be," the Great Horned Serpent sternly warned.

"I have no intention of becoming my forefather," Rowan truthfully emphasized. "I saw what evil madness lurked within the Basilisk of Salazar Slytherin. I hold no such evil desires to turn such a magnificent creature into a mere former shade of itself."

The Great Horned Serpent nodded as she gently lowered her massive tail onto the edge of the marsh for Rowan to take the egg. Carefully putting her wand away, Rowan opens her arms as the egg is gently lowered into her arms. The egg was quite large, so she had to clutch the cream-colored egg with both hands as it was roughly the size of a large watermelon.

"What is the child's name to be, snake mother?" Rowan politely asked.

"Nadira," the beautiful, pale Great Horned Serpent whispered.

"Meaning precious and scarce," Rowan muttered out loud.

The Great Horned Serpent says, "I cannot thank you enough, child snake speaker. Nor can I pay you in silver and gold. But I know that wizards consider my kinds horns very valuable." Gently lowering her massive head, she stopped only a meter away as one of the large horns broke off and slowly was lowered into Rowan's arms to rest on top of the egg.

"When the time comes," the Great Horned Serpent wisely hissed. "You shall know its purpose."

Rowan furrows her brows a bit at that comment. Not able to ponder on it more as the Great Horned Serpent says, "And allow me to grant you one more gift, snake speaker." The large, embedded gem on her forehead begins to glow as a blue light pours onto Rowan.

A foreign kind of knowledge enters Rowan's mind as she widens her eyes in both surprise and delight. The blue glow fades away as the Great Horned Serpent suddenly startles up as she stares into the distance. An instinctual musical humming sound is emitted from her mouth crying out in warning of the incoming danger.

"Snake Speaker beware of the Hydra! Go quickly now!" The Great Horned Serpent urgently urged as Rowan though tempted to wait to see did as she was told. There was a greater instinct inside her that told her to run. And that had perturbed her most of all.