Chronicles of Camelot

Survival of the fittest

When the ferry reached the port of Calais, Harry was not only provided with a second mode of transport for the Order of Pendragon, but also a personal escort, courtesy of the French Ministry of Magic, his mantle of Holy Knight obviously meaning more to them than it did the British. All throughout the journey, Harry and Hermione sat together, both enjoying the luscious French countryside as well as the looks of the many villages and towns from afar, their rented villa located in a magical district on the outskirts of Paris, the district itself known as Les Terres Magiques, a location that Sebastian translated for Harry into The Mystic Lands.

Climbing out of the car, Harry and Hermione both assisted the Order in moving their things into the villa, while Dan and Emma placed their cars in the rented garages, Harry and Hermione choosing to explore while the Order, with help from Dobby, helped settle their Lord and Lady into their accommodation.

In Harry's opinion, the magical world certainly knew how to make a visitor feel welcome: their villa had five bedrooms and three bathrooms, each one decorated like a member of royalty was staying within its walls. Somehow, Harry had a feeling that word had leaked out through the Ministry as to just who was staying on this holiday; as well as the perfectly designed sleeping accommodations, there were also two training rooms – one for physical and one for magical – as well as a library that had Hermione and Emma drooling, until Harry made a rather intimidating comment as he told them, "From what I've heard, the libraries owned by Godric and Salazar are more like whole complexes under one roof."

"Harry!" snapped Hermione, "Don't tease me like that."

Harry just laughed as he then discovered a large lounge and dining area complete with full Muggle entertainment systems and a whole wall filled with the latest films and CDs. To Harry, this wasn't just a rented villa, this was a palace that could only be complete by the sight and presence of a…

"Harry!" called Hermione from the back end of the villa, "You need to see this pool: it's amazing!"

"Okay," Harry laughed, "Now it's perfect."

HPHG

For the first few days, the Grangers, Harry and the Order all divided their plans into exploring Les Terres Magiques as well as training on their physical and magical strengths and weaknesses, as well as – in the case of Harry and Hermione – having long, informative conversations with one of the five warriors about their future skills and powers. In fact, Harry found himself enjoying the holiday so much that a part of him realised, four days into the three-week vacation that he wouldn't have minded if someone had offered him the place on a more permanent basis.

On the Friday morning of their holiday, Harry was lounging out by the pool, his eyes closed and his hands at his sides as he concentrated on the powerful rushes of magic he had experienced lately, his mind trying to clear away the cobwebs of misinformation that Harry had been forced to endure throughout his life. Now that he was destined to be the new leader of a band of warriors for the wizarding world, Harry knew that he needed to go into any situation, battle or otherwise, with a clear head and so, with his daily relaxations and meditations, he was always able to clear his mind of the stories he had been told and finally decide on his own course of action.

"My Lord?"

Opening his eyes, Harry was surprised to see that Sebastian was stood at his side, dressed not in sun-enjoying attire, but the same long, and to Harry's eyes, extremely heavy-looking white robe that he had been dressed in on the ferry. Sitting upright, Harry curled one of his knees against his chest and gently lay his arms across it as he asked, "What's up Sebastian?"

"I was just wondering if you would like to go through some of the training sets necessary for the Knight of Thunder, my Lord," Sebastian explained, his head low as he remained standing, "Lady Hermione is currently running through some water-taming techniques with Elora and Tyler, Felicia and Dante have gone into Paris with Master Daniel and Mistress Emma for protective purposes."