YOOOOO guess who's finally putting this up on FFN!

i've just finished publishing chapters 4 and 5 on ao3 and thought now was as good a time as any to cross-post it onto here as well. hopefully it shouldn't take too long until all chapters are up!

this is a three-way crossover with Danny Phantom, Harry Potter, and American Dragon: Jake Long. it takes place directly after the ADJL finale, sometime after DP season three but ignoring Phantom Planet, and during Order of the Phoenix. it focuses much more on Danny and Jake and most of it is from their POVs, kinda riding out their own story while OotP is happening in the background. first few chapters are slow bc i'm trying to get them into the wizarding setting. hopefully chapter six will have the plot pick up super quick!

enjoy! tell me what you think!

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Minerva stared.

The boy in front of her was short; he couldn't have been taller than five feet, and seemed to be swallowed up by the red jacket he wore; his legs were scrawny and his knees knobbly, wearing a pair of jean shorts and grey converse. He bounced on the balls of his feet, either in nervousness or with excitement - Minerva couldn't tell.

As for his facial features, well. It was clear he wasn't human: his ears were tapered, his almond shaped eyes a dark brown that seemed to reflect little red lights - and his pupils were slightly oval, not unlike a cat's - not too mention the way his bottom jaw seemed to jut out, as if his teeth were too big for his mouth. His hair, though not inhuman, was cause for strange looks: black with brown undertones, spiked, dipped in green. The features would hardly be noticeable in large cities full of muggles (where he was likely from), but in a school full of people who dealt with the mythical every day, they were hard to miss.

But he was tiny. Tiny and short. And very, very young. Much younger than she'd expected.

So, she stared.

The boy (he didn't look like a protector of anything) exhaled through his slightly upturned nose, adjusting his grip on his luggage. He glanced at the stairs behind him as if contemplating whether or not he should run, then shifted his gaze back towards the baffled witch.

"Close your mouth, you'll catch flies," he said off handedly, thick brows rising for a moment. His accent was distinctly American, though it was hard to place which region exactly.

Minerva bristled, schooling her features into a curt frown. "Watch your tone, young man."

The boy glared at her, unafraid. "Listen, lady," he snapped. "I'm not here to have fun. I'm not here to watch my tone. I'm here because I'm supposed to check up on stupid wizards because I'm the stupid magical protector of the stupid country overseas. The only reason I got fucking Scotland of all places is because someone decided to switch it up a bit and draw straws. Guess which size I got."

Merlin's beard. Were all Americans this rude? Minerva would've slapped the boy if she weren't under any obligation to be a good host.

Pushing down the growing resentment, the witch said cooly, "I expected someone much more... mature."

"Yeah, well. Grandpa isn't technically a protector anymore. Plus he thought this would be a good 'learning experience' and that I needed to 'let go of my illogical anger towards wizards.' Whatever. It's not exactly my call. Not until I complete my training."

"You-" Minerva felt a growing dread. This wasn't what was supposed to happen. "You aren't even out of apprentice-hood yet? How old are you?"

"Fourteen. I've still got four more years to go." A grin made its way across his face, and Minerva could see that his bottom canines were longer, sharper, and - if she remembered her lore correctly - retractable.

She sighed, twisting the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose. "So there's no one more suitable for the job?"

"If you're talking about anyone else being the American Dragon, then I'm sorry to say you're stuck with me. My sister, maybe, but she's even younger." His grin turned into a snarl. "I fucking hate drawing straws."

"Please do not use such language around the students."

"Hey, if they're my age, they'll be swearing even more. Or, wait-" he tapped his chin thoughtfully with a calloused finger. "Y'all are Brits, right? Despite being in Scotland. You're probably all posh and drink tea. No swearing."

The child was purposefully trying to grate on her nerves, Minerva decided.

"This luggage is getting heavy," the dragon-apprentice continued. "Will we be going to our rooms at some point or are we just gonna stay here all night?"

"We are waiting for our other guest," she explained. They stood right outside the Great Hall, and she could see the boy glancing around her to look at the gigantic doors behind her.

"Huh," he muttered. "Fine. Well, then. I'll just sit down. My legs hurt." And with that, he plopped down on the cold stone floor. Sending a flash of a smile up her way, he added, "Name's Jake, by the way. Jake Long. Figured you'd want to know what to yell when I'm misbehaving. Because, trust me, I'm completely unsupervised by other dragons here." He blinked and his eyes turned reptilian, a bright copper color. A grin. "And I hate wizards."

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

There was a line, Danny decided, and Clockwork had definitely crossed it.

He'd grown up around the concept of the supernatural and paranormal - ghosts were the largest part of it, but his parents had also loved their mythology books, so Danny had had his fair share of magic.

He much preferred it when it wasn't biting him in the ass.

Admittedly, the whole going to a magical school thing was exciting, but he didn't exactly have the time for it, what with, you know, keeping his city safe from malevolent spirits.

Clockwork didn't give him a choice on the matter, however, and he supposed the wizened old ghost deserved some credit for not immediately ejecting him to wherever it was he needed to go before saying goodbye to everyone.

"Some powerful allies have asked for my help," Clockwork had told him in the middle of English class (it was a little embarrassing for Danny to admit he hadn't actually noticed everyone in the room was frozen until Clockwork had tapped his shoulder). "Due to the Observants' refusal to let me intervene, I'll be sending my apprentice instead."

"Oh," Danny said, busy staring at Lancer, who had been frozen mid-sentence. "Okay. But, uh. Why are you telling me this? Shouldn't you apprentice be the one to know?"

Clockwork had stared at him blankly, opening his mouth for a moment before snapping it shut. He morphed from an old man into a child. "I... Danny, you're my apprentice."

"What? No, I'm not," Danny replied, turning his full attention towards the Master of Time, confusion etched across his features.

"Yes. You are."

"But you've never given me a lesson - well, apart from the whole CAT thing, but I'd rather not think about that, and - wait. I'm getting off track."

"I'm your mentor," Clockwork elaborated.

"Oh, yeah, that clears things up. Thanks. I completely understand."

Clockwork sighed. "Daniel. You are under my mentoring because I was able to spare you from the Observants. You are my responsibility, and, in turn, my apprentice. We haven't actively been having lessons, but I assure you I've taught you many things of note."

Danny groaned. "God, I hate your cryptic shit. Just - what is it. What do I need to do, now?"

Clockwork had proceeded to act like an actual teacher and explain magic to him, the war with Voldemort ("That's such a stupid name for a Dark Lord," Danny had said in between snorts of laughter), and Harry Potter's situation after the Triwizard Tournament (he'd sobered up after that).

"I don't get it," Danny said after a beat. Clockwork had explained everything fantastically, saying it in a way that would assure magic would make sense in Danny's mind. "Why do I need to be there? So they're in a war. Wouldn't it be better for you to go and, I don't know, turn back time to fix everything?"

"I cannot intervene," Clockwork repeated, aging once more. "Danny, you have to understand: Amity Park is a ghost central not just because of your parents' portal but also because the muggle ghosts haven't been found by the magical community yet. All there is are rumors. Amity is such a haunted and mysterious place, the wizards tend to stay far away from it. The ectosignatures cancel out most magic, which is why there aren't many undiscovered wizards in that area."

"It's still a lot to take in."

"I know, child. I would prefer you not to know about this at all, and I'd also prefer you don't go to Scotland - the Ministry of Magic isn't very open-minded when it comes to hybrids-"

"Woah, woah, woah. Back up a bit." Danny stood from his seat, glowering at the ghost. "Scotland? Are you insane? I can't go to Scotland. I have-"

"A city to protect, I know." Clockwork pulled at his hood, and Danny would have guessed he looked nervous. "There are other ghost hunters. You also have Danielle. And, if bad comes to worse, I will take care of things. But you must go to Hogwarts."

"But how will I fit in? I'm not a wizard. I don't know spells or potions of whatever cliches there are about these people, and they don't know I'm half ghost. You also haven't answered my question on what the hell I'll be doing there."

"You will not need to hide your ghostly status," Clockwork replied.

"But I thought you said-"

"I will make sure you're safe. Danny, they are allies of mine. They don't entirely understand what I am, but they know I very rarely interfere with their business. For Albus to call me now means something very grave has happened."

"You won't happen to tell me what that something is?"

"I cannot. The Observants are very adamant about keeping out of the wizarding world's business. But-" here he leaned on his staff, age changing again, "-I will ensure that they cannot touch you. You will stay inside Hogwarts for most of the time." A frown flitted onto his face. "A ministry worker may arrive at the school to keep an eye on things. Try to avoid her."

Danny nodded. He felt kind of... numb? Was that the word? Yeah, that'd work. He figured he'd have enough time to scream about today's weirdness once he got home.

"As for what you'll be doing there," Clockwork continued, "Albus has called for two representatives of the supernatural empire to keep an eye out for any dangers to the students, to defend them if something were to happen, to keep them out of harm's way, and to make allies in case of an upcoming war."

Danny stared at him for a moment. "Fuck," he finally managed.

The old ghost grinned slowly. "Fuck indeed."

The two stood silent for a moment, the air heavy with silence. Danny wouldn't ever get used to how dead everything seemed when Clockwork stopped time, the medallion weighing down on his chest. He noticed with some satisfaction that Dash was drooling on his desk. Across the room, a paper airplane had frozen midair.

The rest of the talk had been about fleshing out the details, like when he'd be leaving (a few weeks before summer ends, apparently), how'd he get there (through the Ghost Zone, joy), and what exactly his job would entail.

"Make friends, watch the classes, learn as much as you can about their world," Clockwork had told him. "Do not be afraid to show your ghostly side. Make sure they know you are only there to help."

Danny nodded, then stopped as he thought of something. "You said there would be two representatives, right? Who's the second?"

"A dragon," Clockwork said flippantly, waving his hand in a dismissive matter.

"Like... like Aragon or Dora? They're ghosts, so-"

"No, no. I mean an actual dragon."

"Oh. Isn't that kind of impractical? I'll be sharing a room with this thing, so..."

"Daniel. I do not mean a feral dragon. I mean a Draco."

"A - what? Huh?"

Clockwork sighed heavily. "You'll find out soon enough. He's about your age, though, so you should make friends easily."

"I - okay?" He didn't see how he could easily make friends with a dragon.

Clockwork looked at him again. He morphed into a child. "I will see you in a few months, Danny."

"Wait - you're leaving? But I still-"

Too late. A portal opened up behind the Master of Time, and the medallion around Danny's neck lifted up off his head.

"Time in," Clockwork commanded, and everything unfroze.

Danny braced himself for the sudden influx of noise. Paulina's screeching about Phantom's lastest ghost fight was closest to his ears, and he winced at the volume. Lancer stood at the front, dumbfounded for a second, before spotting Danny and scowling at him.

"Mr. Fenton," the teacher said. "I know there are only a few days left of school, but is it really necessary to try and leave my class early?"

"I wasn't..." Danny realized he had been standing by his desk, looking highly suspicious. "Oh. No. Sorry, Mr. Lancer. I'm... uh." He sat down, face burning.

Stupid Clockwork.

Now, here Danny stood, still very much not done screaming about magic, in front of a castle, of all things.

Sam and Tuck weren't supposed to know about magic, but they were his best friends and there was no way he'd keep this from them. Though Tucker had taken some time convincing, Sam was excited about the prospect of wizards and promised Danny that she'd make sure Amity was kept safe. As for his parents, they were told he was on an internship to NASA. They didn't question it; they were too busy tinkering with another toy designed to destroy him.

The trip through the Ghost Zone hadn't been nearly as horrible as he'd first expected - Wulf had helped him with portal jumping and the ghosts had avoided him, thank God - so he'd reached Scotland in no time; except, of course, the fact that it was now ten in the evening when not moments before it had been four p.m. back in Illinois.

Stupid time difference. There was no way he'd get any sleep tonight.

Danny shifted his luggage to his other hand, nervously tapping his foot on the ground. Should he fly in? knock? Why the hell did they even have a lake right in front of the building? Wasn't that impractical? Especially when there was only a single dirt road leading up to it-what-the-fuck-

The only thing he'd enjoyed so far were the stars above him. He was in the middle of the mountains with no civilization as far as he could tell sans the castle in front of him, leaving a very clear night sky for him to admire; the stars seemed to spin above his head in dozens of colors, making him feel like he was already flying around in space.

Realizing he'd been staring slack-jawed at the stars for several minutes now, Danny hastily turned back towards the giant doors in front of him. He sucked in some air - not like he particularly needed it, but the motion felt familiar - and exhaled slowly, shouldering his bag and walking resolutely up the steps.

What's the worse that could happen, right? He'd already been wrenched from his home life to protect a bunch of wizards he'd only learned about a few months back.

At least he was able to enjoy part of his summer.

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Jake hated drawing straws. And having to leave the country. And wizards. Especially wizards.

Okay, so maybe he was a little biased. But, hey, when you have to spend your time at school with a pompous English wizard and then are forced to go spend even more time with probably pompous English wizards, you tend to hold a grudge.

He didn't even get to stay in Hong Kong for the rest of the summer; instead, Gramps had gotten a call from some Bumblebee (at least, that's what it sounded like over the phone) and ordered that Jake and Fu come with him to the the Isle of Draco because there was "an issue in the magical community that could not wait."

Turns out there was a wizarding war brewing and dragons had been asked to protect the different magical schools around the world; yet, instead of just sending the dragons to their respective schools in their own country, some jackass had the bright idea of drawing straws instead because no one wanted to go to Hogwarts (the root of the evil, apparently) and to "give the dragons who are next in line a chance to experience what they'd be in charge of for a few months."

(Not that Haley hadn't already been exposed to it all. Jake still laughed at the thought of how stressed Little Miss Perfect had been.)

The point being: Jake was not happy to be there.

"Bumblebee" hadn't even showed up to greet him personally so Jake could give him a piece of his mind. Instead he'd gotten a strict Minerva McGonagall who clearly didn't like him. He couldn't think of a reason why.

While he was simmering in anger and self pity on the cold stone floor, Minerva had taken to pacing in front of the grand doors as they waited for their next guest. They'd been there for about ten minutes now since their chat, and Jake couldn't help but feel a growing resentment for the late representative. He didn't know who or what it was, but Gramps had mentioned interdimensional travel. So. That should be interesting.

Just as he was debating ditching Hogwarts and booking it back to New York, a bang sounded behind him as the door opened and a scrawny figure stepped in. Jake stood up from his perch to watch the newcomer as he hauled his luggage down the hall and up the steps, not seeming to notice the witch and dragon in front of him as he kept swearing under his breath and looking at the ground. The bag looked heavy.

Minerva looked somewhat relieved that the second guest had finally arrived. She cleared her throat, causing the boy's head to snap up, and all the relief vanished from her face to be replaced with shock, then a scowl, and finally resignation.

"Uh, hi," the boy said. He had messy black hair that flopped in front of his face. His skin was pale, like, zombie-pale, and dark circles rested underneath icy blue eyes. The pupils didn't seem to react to the light as he looked up and at Jake. The kid was maybe a few inches taller than him, which really wasn't that great a feat. He wore a light blue long-sleeved shirt with the NASA logo on it and a pair of baggy jeans and black converse. He didn't look much older than Jake.

Jake grinned at him. "Yo."

"Oh, Merlin," Minerva lamented. "How old are you? I thought we sent for a Master of Time, who is a ghost. Not a... another boy."

The kid looked over at Jake with a confused and slightly offended expression. Jake shrugged.

"I, uh," the kid began. He rubbed the back of his neck. "Clockwork sent me instead. He couldn't intervene, something about being bound by the Observants. I don't know. Anyway, the name's Danny, and I'm, uh, fifteen as of a few weeks."

So he was about a year older than Jake. Great. Maybe he'd have some advice for when he started high school.

"And you're American," Minerva moaned. Her lips became one thin line. "So the Master of Time isn't coming?"

"Who's the Master of Time?" Jake asked, curious.

Danny gave him a look of I'll explain later. "Don't worry, Ms..."

"Call me Minerva."

"Ms. Minerva-"

Jake snorted. The professors only allowed them to be on a first name basis because they were technically supposed to be wizened old magical representatives, not two teenagers.

But. Ms. Minerva. Oh, he'd have a field day with that.

"I assure you I'm completely competent," Danny said with not nearly enough confidence. It sounded more like he was rehearsing lines. "I'm, ah, not a ghost, but as close as you can get, I suppose-"

"Not a ghost?" Minerva stared at him. "I was told there would be a ghost."

"Would you let me finish?" Danny burst out. Jake could barely refrain himself from laughing out loud. Oh, he liked this kid. "I'm what the ghosts - muggle ghosts, I guess - call a halfa. I'm half ghost, half human. Yes, it's possible. I died in one dimension and didn't die in the other. Schrödinger's boy, or whatever you like to call it."

Everyone was silent for a moment.

Danny blushed furiously, and Jake noticed how it seemed to have green undertones. He also had a heavy dusting of freckles on his face, but for some reason the dragon hadn't seen it before. "Um," Danny spluttered. "I. Yeah. Sorry. I, uh. I get tired of explaining it. And I don't really have to keep it secret, apparently, so I figured it was better to get it over with."

Minerva responded with a curt nod. "I'm not entirely sure I understand yet, but I appreciate someone being sent over."

Oh, man. She liked him already. Jake would have to bring him over to the dark side before he was completely brainwashed. It was clear this kid had never been around wizards.

"I have, uh, ghost powers," Danny was saying. "And a ghost form. See-" He raised a fist and it was encased in a green glow. A feeling not unlike static electricity reached Jake, and he involuntarily took a step back.

The witch's interest looked piqued as she leaned forward to inspect the green energy surrounding Danny's fist. "Fascinating," she murmured. "Muggle ghosts are much more unique, it seems."

Looking a bit uncomfortable, Danny extinguished the light and lowered his hand.

Jake cleared his throat. Both people's heads snapped towards him. "Rooms?" he suggested.

Minerva McGonagall nodded. "Yes, of course. This way, if you please." The witch walked by the grand doors and to the hallway, briskly making her way down it without looking back to make sure the two kids were following.

Jake shrugged, glancing sidelong at Danny as they shouldered their luggage to follow the professor. He grinned at the halfa again, showing off his fangs. "I'm Jake Long."

"Danny Fenton," Danny said. He narrowed his eyes. "So you're really a dragon? I mean. Your eyes and ears are a bit of a giveaway, and those are fangs. But no scales, so..."

Jake laughed, picking up the pace. "Dragons - our kind, at least - are shapeshifters. This is my human form. Helps me blend in." He touched his ears. "The less-than-human qualities are actually because I've been using my powers so much in training. They're supposed to fade over time as I get more control over my human form."

Danny nodded. "That's pretty cool," he said. "So you're, what, here for the same reason I am? Making allies, being on the defensive in case of an attack?"

"Yes and no," Jake replied. "Dude, I've dealt with enough wizards to know I won't really be making many allies. I'm a protector, yeah, but unless I'm getting paid, I'm staying far away from the little brats."

Danny looked worried. "Oh," he said in a quieter voice. "Okay. I hope they're not too bad."

Jake let out a burst of laughter, slapping the kid on the back (he was cold, wow). "Don't worry, yo! That's my personal opinion. You're likeable. I'm sure it'll be fine."

A small grin made its way after that statement. "You really don't like wizards, do you?" They began to climb up a flight of stairs.

Jake shook his head. "Sorry, but no. There was an exchange student who turned out to be a wizard - self absorbed prick, a little more chill now, but still. Then there's Eli Pandarus, a dark wizard who keeps popping up every few weeks and ruining my day. Not to mention the warlock kids at the edge of town who like to use me as a piñata. Or the time I stumbled across a witch who hexed me with zits for like, two weeks. And I had to go to school. God, I hate her. All the other magical creatures around New York do, too."

"Jeez. Amity Park must be really off the radar if I haven't even heard of all this."

"Well, the magical community is kept secret - wait, wait, wait," Jake stopped for a moment to stare at Danny. "Did you say Amity Park?"

"Yeah?" Danny kept on walking. He looked at the dragon nervously. "What about it?"

"As in, 'America's Most Haunted City,' Amity Park? Ghosts-running-rampart Amity Park? Amity-no-one-magical-ever-goes-there-because-it's-so-weird-Park?"

"If you're talking about Amity Park, Illinois," Danny said dryly, "then, yes. That Amity Park."

Jake whistled. "Wow. And I thought I had it bad. How many ghosts attack per day?"

"Depends. It can get up to about ten or eleven."

"Wow."

"Yeah." Danny looked at all the paintings hung up on the walls and realized with a jolt they were moving. He shook his head, wondering at what else there was in the castle.

"So," Jake continued, "how do you deal? With all the ghosts 'n shit."

"I fight them."

"You - you fight them. You, a ghost, fight other ghosts."

"I'm half ghost," Danny pointed out. "I still live among humans. My ghost form, Phantom, is a lot more well known."

"Phantom? As in, Danny Phantom?"

His legs were starting to burn from all the stairs. Minerva was still walking about ten feet in front of them, and he hoped she wasn't eavesdropping. "So you have heard of me."

Jake grinned again. "I'm the magical protector of the USA. Well, not until I'm eighteen; until then, I'm only in charge of New York and some of the surrounding states. But I'm supposed to know about all the big figures."

"I'm a big figure?"

Jake barked a laugh. "I'm kidding, dude. I read about you on an article online."

"Oh." Danny pouted. Jake laughed at his expression again.

"It's pretty cool, though," he said. "What you do. No one human sees me doing anything."

Danny shrugged. "Thanks, I guess. I don't know. People don't always like me. I'm a ghost, so."

"That's messed up."

"Yeah."

Silence overtook the both of them for a few moments. Jake focused on his footfalls and how they echoed on the stairs, then noticed how Danny didn't seem to make any noise as he walked. Creepy.

"Ugh," Jake complained, "there are too many stairs."

Danny smirked a little. "Can't you fly?"

"'Course I can. Can't you?"

"Ha! I'm a ghost, I think the least I can do is fly."

Jake stopped, turning his head to look at the pale boy. "Wanna race?"

"We don't even know where we're going. And Minerva wouldn't like it."

"Minerva can shove a broomstick up her ass. I got the short straw, I might as well have fun here."

Danny snickered. "Fine, fine." His blue eyes flashed a toxic green, glowing in the dim light. Jake shivered as the temperature around them dropped a few degrees. "Let's see what you've got, Dragon Breath."

"Oh, it is so on, Casper."

"Going ghost!" Danny cried, and a ring of light materialized around his waist. It split into two and traveled up and down his body, replacing his normal attire with a black jumpsuit. A flaming D rested on his chest. His skin gained an ethereal glow, his freckles more prominent, and his hair became a snowy white. His eyes burned more fiercely.

Jake whistled. "Not bad. And cute logo." He flashed his teeth again, and his fangs were longer; scales brimmed beneath the surface of his skin as he tapped into his chi. "Dragon up!" Jake yelled and let flames consume him, grinning as Danny shouted in surprise and leaped back.

His jaw elongated and his fingers grew claws; a tail and wings came into existence as the fire continued to burn, making him feel warm but comforted at the same time as his body morphed into his true form. Before long, a tall, crimson red dragon sat coiled on the stairs, copper eyes alight with energy.

Jake took a moment to enjoy the stunned look on Danny's face before spreading his wings and flying up the stairs, shouting, "Ready-set-go!" over his shoulder.

"Hey!" he heard behind him. "No fair!"

Jake laughed as he surpassed Minerva, who was staring at him with a furious expression on her face. He maneuvered up the stairs, but his wingspan was a little large and so he had to rely partly on pushing off things with his claws - it was fortunate his form was rather slender. He heard some paintings shouting in indignation as he flew by.

A cold hand tapped his shoulder. Jake looked to see Danny Phantom flying beside him, and easy smirk on his face. The ghost boy laughed openly and shot forward, taking advantage of Jake's limited space to overtake him. The dragon huffed in frustration and reached for the spectral tail in front of him, but his claws went right through.

"Intangibility!" Jake exclaimed. "Awesome!"

Danny going intangible was handy for a number of things, one of which being that he didn't have to worry about the stairs moving and hitting him in the face.

In his moment of distraction, Jake wasn't able to get out of the way fast enough as a stone staircase came his way. He fell with a yelp, crashing into another staircase below him. Groaning at the impact (That'll leave a mark for a while), he allowed himself to revert back to human form. Now it just hurt everywhere and not just his back. Joy.

Hearing laughter from above him, Jake turned his head to glare at Danny, who was doing involuntary flips in the air as he cackled.

"Oh, my G-" He clutched his stomach. "That was - you just-" A hand went up to wipe a tear. "It hit you in the face."

Jake moaned dramatically. "Yeah, and it hurt. Now, are you gonna help me up, or..."

"Yeah, yeah. Just... just give me this moment."

"I hate you."

"We've only just met."

"I know. I've decided I hate you." There was no weight in his words; Jake knew he'd made a friend.

"Does this mean I've won? That I've defeated the Great Dragon?"

"Whatever, Fenton." A beat. "I don't wanna move."

Chuckles from up ahead. "Here, I'll help you." A pair of cold arms encircled his waist and pulled him up. Jake winced at the pain lancing throughout his ribs and back, closing his eyes as Danny flew him to the top of the stairs, where Minerva waited with crossed arms.

"You'll be okay though, right? You didn't break anything?" He sounded worried.

"Mm. Get me a soda and I'll be fine." He bit his tongue to stop himself from screaming as Danny put him on the ground. "...Although, a healing spell would be nice."

Minerva huffed impatiently. "I'll bring you to the hospital wing. What were you two thinking? Do you want to get killed on the first day here?"

Danny landed, and the white rings appeared again to turn him back to Fenton. The air around them grew considerably warmer. "Sorry, Minerva," he said sheepishly.

The witch shook her head in disbelief, closing her eyes briefly as if to ask some higher power what she had done to deserve this. "I'll show you to your room," she said in a monotone voice, opening her eyes again. "You'll be sleeping in the Room of Requirement, but it'll have to wait actually going in until we can fix up Jake."

"I second that," Jake piped up weakly.

"Alright." Danny clapped his hands together. "Hospital wing. Where to?"

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

They used a spell to levitate Jake and bring him to the hospital wing without jostling him too much, for which he was grateful. Madam Pomfrey was in near hysterics when she learned that they'd nearly killed the American Dragon not two hours after he'd arrived; luckily, the damage wasn't too severe. A few bruised ribs, and he'd nearly broken his back, but nothing several painstaking minutes of having magic done on him couldn't handle.

They had their luggage (left at the bottom of the stairs, whoops) brought up to the where the Room of Requirement would be by a group of house elves. Jake had this really guilty look on his face when he was told who brought them up, but said nothing. Danny decided then that he'd try to learn as much as he could about the magical realm.

"The Room of Requirement functions exactly as its name says," Minerva explained to them in front of a large tapestry. "To enter, you must walk by it three times while thinking of what you may need. For this purpose, I would recommend a sleeping quarters. A common room, perhaps."

Danny peered at the tapestry. It showcased a man in fancy robes at the forefront with giant plant-like structures behind him. He held his hand above his head as if bracing himself for something. "So where does it appear? We just think about it?"

Minerva nodded. Her face loosened a bit from its rather stressed expression. "I must go talk with Albus, now. He'll want to know you've made it... in one piece. If you have any trouble with opening the door, ask one of the paintings to send for a staff member." And with that, she was walking down the hall again, not so much as a goodbye.

"A painting," Danny deadpanned, but when he looked at Jake, he saw that the boy had already moved passed that statement as if it were the most normal thing in the world. "Fine, whatever," the ghost muttered to himself. "Talking paintings. That makes sense. Of course."

The two boys walked up and down the hall three times as instructed. Danny didn't know how hard he was supposed to think, so he settled with repeating, Room to stay in. Room to stay in. Like a hotel room or something. Or, I dunno, a common room? Like Minerva said? Whatever that would look like? Just something to sleep in, please. Thanks.

"Danny," Jake called, amusement raising his pitch. "Yo. You can stop staring at the ground like you're constipated."

Danny flushed, raising his head to look at the shorter kid. He stood in front of a door that had definitely not been there before, a self-satisfied grin on his face.

"What are you smirking about?" Danny said as he walked by him and opened the door. "You're the one who ran into a staircase."

"Rude," Jake muttered, then stopped to stare into the room. "Woah. Okay. This is actually pretty sweet." He walked in, closely followed by Danny. The door swung shut behind them.

The room was maybe five times larger than Danny's at home, walls painted a blue-grey. It held two twin beds pushed against the right side of the wall with a curtain separating it for privacy. Each side of the curtain was a dull shade of purple and held the logos of both representatives: the DP on Danny's jumpsuit, and a coiled red dragon with a snarling maw. Upon closer inspection, Danny could see that their luggage had been dropped off by the foot of the bed.

The left side of the room was occupied by a large fireplace ringed with dark red bricks. Wood lay inside, unlit. A few couches sat around it, a soft rug the same color as the curtains underneath.

The far side held what appeared to be shelves full of books; Danny could make out some titles, some of which he recognized, but most of which must've belonged solely to the magical community (Hair Hygiene for Pixies was one of them). He looked to the right and found a small fridge pushed up against a wall.

"Jake!" Danny called, making his way over. "Check it out!"

Jake bounded over. "Aw, sweet, a minifridge!" he exclaimed, bending down to open it. He shouted in triumph and turned around to hold up two cans of soda. "Bingo!" he said gleefully.

Danny laughed and took the can from his hands, popping it open and taking a swig. It fizzled pleasantly on his tongue, but was a little too sweet for his taste. "I prefer coffee," he said.

"No problem," Jake replied. "I think I saw a cabinet full of coffee and tea over by the kitchen."

Danny blinked. "The kitchen?"

"Well, it's not exactly a kitchen. It's just a bunch of cabinets. I think there were some pop tarts, too." A wry grin crawled up his face. "I guess they really don't expect us to be at breakfast on time every day."

Danny snorted, taking his soda with him as he continued to explore.

The room had an extra training area, as the boys soon discovered. A doorway lead to a circular room where a few punching backs lay on the side, a mat in the middle of the room for sparring. Some wooden sticks - Fencing? Swordfighting? - were leaning against the wall, and weights were settled on a rack. Some metal beams for pull ups were strung up on the wall, and there was even a small treadmill.

Danny stared. "This isn't a hotel room," he finally managed.

Jake gave him a confused look. "I asked for a place to stay that would cater to our needs. What, you asked for a hotel room?"

Danny rubbed the back of his neck. "I wasn't that specific," he finally managed, glancing sideways at the dragon.

His new friend grinned at him. "C'mon, Casper. I wanna get some training in before goin' to bed, and now that I'm healed I feel like, super energized. What d'you say to a little sparring match?"

"A dragon and a ghost sparring in a hidden room in a magical castle," Danny mused. "This is gonna be a weird year." He grinned. "You're on."

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Minerva McGongall sat in her office, thinking over the conversation she'd had with Dumbledore. He'd wanted to know how the two representatives were settling in, to which she pointed out that they'd only been there a couple hours. Of course, she'd asked him just what he was planning to do with a couple of teenagers and not the capable adults he'd sent for, but Albus had merely responded with a mischievous smile and the short answer of, "They'll be able to get the full Hogwarts experience this way, Minerva."

The professor sighed. She knew Albus planned on sending Danny and Jake to the Order's headquarters; it was the best way to ensure they knew the dangers lurking in this new era of darkness. She only wished they'd been permitted to know about it. The Order kept its secrets very well - perhaps too well. They wouldn't be happy knowing they wouldn't actually be able to spend much time in their new room until the school year started.

Her mouth twitched at the thought of Jake Long seeing the dark, gloomy interior of Number Twelve Grimmauld Place.

For now, however, she had a job to do: get the two children situated, show them around the school, then bring them to the Order so they could gain more information, and hopefully meet Harry in the process. She wondered when Albus planned on bringing him out of that horrible muggle home.

For now, though, she would deal with the Americans.

Minerva tapped her fingers on the cool surface of her desk. She hoped the headmaster's plan would work.

There had been enough suffering for her students.

DDDDDDDDDDDDDD

gonna get the rest of the chapters on here asap! have a lovely day :)