Echoes of Control
"Harry, where on earth have you been?!" exclaimed Hermione the moment she saw him enter through the door of the Ravenclaw common room, her face full of worry.
Next to her were Daphne and Draco, equally unsettled, and the three of them let out a sigh when they saw him appear, safe and sound.
"Mm... I was talking to Hagrid. It seems he received a summons from the Wizengamot for a trial about Buckbeak," Harry explained calmly as he watched them. Seeing their worried faces brought a slight smile to his lips; deep down, he felt grateful to have friends who cared about him.
However, that smile seemed to irritate Hermione and Daphne, who immediately stepped forward and began pinching his arms mercilessly.
"Do you think we're fools? We looked for you everywhere!" Daphne snapped, clearly upset.
"Ouch, ouch! It's true, that's where I came from!" protested Harry, complaining about the pain though doing nothing to push them away. He watched them amused, even as their faces showed pure fury.
Meanwhile, Draco observed them with his arms crossed, as if he thought his friend deserved that punishment. Although he did not join in, he did nothing to help.
"Wait... did you say 'trial'?" Draco asked suddenly, his expression turning serious. "Are they going to send him to prison?"
His words made Hermione and Daphne stop immediately, turning to Harry with tense faces.
"I don't think it will get to Azkaban," Harry replied, rubbing his arms as he took the chance to step a little away from his furious friends. "But obviously there are people pulling strings to make things difficult. Hagrid is very worried... more about Buckbeak than about himself," he added, shaking his head. "I'm fairly sure that if we ask our families for help, Hagrid won't have to go to prison. The real problem is how the Ministry will act regarding Buckbeak."
"Why?" Daphne asked, not fully understanding. If they could help Hagrid, she thought, they should be able to help Buckbeak too.
"Because Buckbeak is an animal," Hermione explained, frowning. "He has no laws to protect him. If the Minister himself wants him executed to clear his name, he will do it. He does not need a trial or public approval. He will simply say it's a dangerous creature."
Her face hardened with anger as she said it.
And she was right.
A person could go to trial; if guilty, be punished, and if innocent, released... at least in theory, depending on who was judging.
But an animal did not have that opportunity.
If they labeled it dangerous, they would simply send someone to put it down. No questions, no defense, nothing.
And if anyone dared to ask, the Minister would say it was to "protect the students," and most parents would believe him.
"Then we have to come up with a plan to help Buckbeak and Hagrid," Hermione said quickly, her mind already racing. Daphne nodded decisively.
Draco, however, looked at Harry. He knew exactly what his friend had just done: use his usual knack for diverting attention and avoiding scolding. It was something he always did, and he was getting better at it every time.
Still, Draco was starting to notice when Harry did it on purpose.
He was about to speak and steer the conversation back to the original topic, but Harry cut him off first.
"Draco, I need your help with something," he said, his gaze serious.
Draco's eyes met his friend's, and for a moment he saw a different kind of determination there.
"Sure," he answered without hesitation.
"You two, please help Hagrid. If you need more support, just come and find us. I have something to do," Harry added, addressing the girls.
Hermione frowned, clearly suspicious.
But before she could say anything, Harry continued:
"I'll tell you later. I don't want you to be distracted; Hagrid needs all the help he can get, and you two are the best at it. Especially at gathering information," he said in a kindly but persuasive tone.
Hermione watched him for a few seconds, her brow knitted, knowing it was one of his tricks to avoid questions. Finally she sighed, resigned.
"Fine, we'll take care of Hagrid. But I expect you to tell us everything as soon as we're done," she replied firmly.
Daphne nodded as well, still staring at him intently.
"Yes, don't worry," Harry said calmly, offering a conciliatory smile.
Then he motioned for Draco to follow him; he needed to explain in private what help he required.
…
Draco entered the room he shared with Harry and Terry, who was already sleeping deeply, snoring with his mouth open and letting a small thread of drool escape.
Both of them were used to their peculiar roommate.
"So... what's going on?" Draco asked, watching him attentively.
"Do you remember what they said at the start of the school year?" Harry began, folding his arms as he thought. "The school was renovated, but the secret rooms were kept. They only changed them a little, so whoever finds them learns something new. But that means if someone knew their location before, they are probably still there."
"Yes," Draco replied calmly, following his line of thought.
"I need your help to complete the Marauder's Map," Harry said seriously.
Draco raised an eyebrow, confused. "And why do you want to do that? That map already showed everything important. The hidden places were more like a childish game from the past."
Harry shook his head slowly, his expression sombre. "If the map is complete, no one will be able to hide in any of those places."
Draco frowned, understanding dawning slowly. "Do you mean Pettigrew? Do you think he will come?" he asked, looking at him gravely.
"Yes, I'm very sure he will come; he's been moving around here the whole time," Harry said, his gaze serious.
"You want to catch him," Draco confirmed. "Fine, I'll help you," he added as if it were nothing.
Obviously Harry knew Draco would say yes; after all, he was his best friend, someone he trusted so much.
"Then, how are you?" Draco asked, probably referring to what happened in Defense Against the Dark Arts class; when that almost demonic version of Harry came out of the wardrobe and frightened everyone. Harry had disappeared after that.
They and the others searched the castle for hours without finding him; then Harry returned as if nothing had happened.
"To be honest, furious," Harry answered, the words coming out with difficulty. "So furious that I can barely contain my emotions; and at the same time, confused. Why does that guy keep wanting to come after me? What is he trying to prove, that I'm worth risking himself for? If he appears in front of me, I would surely kill him without hesitation. And at the same time I'm afraid that, when I learn why, something in me will change. You saw it too; what my power can do, the power I inherited from my mother. Emotions influence me more than any other wizard; and at our age we are far more vulnerable to them. Even if you learn Occlumency, Occlumency only hides emotions, it does not make them disappear," Harry said, finally letting out what he had kept inside for so long. "I'm afraid that if I lose control, it won't be a one-time thing; I might become someone dangerous who would put you at risk, the whole school at risk. Every time I feel that sensation, a mass of energy in my stomach warns me that that could happen."
Draco looked at him in silence, listening closely to his friend's emotions.
"You're feeding it," he said calmly.
"I know," Harry acknowledged. "The problem is my power works almost subconsciously; I can't stop it," he added, touching his stomach lightly.
"You know you won't become what you fear; your mother did what she did because she had lost everything; you still have a lot that would stop you. It's just your anxiety bothering you," Draco said seriously.
"I know," Harry replied; his voice sounded more tired than certain. "But even if it's anxiety, controlling it is difficult. At some point I would like to let it all out to see what happens; but then I'm afraid."
"Let it out," Draco said as if it were completely simple.
Harry looked at him like he did not understand.
Draco, for his part, looked at him as if he were a fool.
"Are you seriously thinking what you're saying?" Harry asked, looking at him.
"Obviously," Draco said, folding his arms; his tone was relaxed. "Just let it explode; let your emotions out like a waterfall. Only then will you see the truth," he explained with a somewhat cocky smile. "It's easy," he added.
Harry let out a sigh, looking at him.
"It's not that easy," he replied.
"Yes, it is," Draco insisted. "You have your mother; you have our uncles; you have us; you have those crazy magical animals that are walking chaos. If you're afraid of losing control, simply lose it; if you can't control it, we will stop you," Draco said with such confidence that it even made Harry smile. "And if we can't, we'll leave the problem to Aunt Wanda," he added later.
Harry thought about it for a moment; if things got out of hand there would not really be anything irreparable; his mother could fix it easily. At that point Harry felt that maybe it was all nonsense; his power came from Wanda, and she could, without a doubt, sort it out.
"For now I'll try to catch Pettigrew before attempting anything dangerous," Harry said, as if he were already thinking of putting it into practice. "It will be better to do it somewhere with fewer people."
"Hey, you might not know this, but this could be the full awakening of your power," Draco commented calmly as he prepared to lie down.
"I hope it is," Harry said, this time calmer; he also prepared to sleep, knowing that the next day he would have to explore much of the castle. Maybe they would even join the competition the twins had organized to find all the secret rooms and passageways of Hogwarts.