Wild Magic - Chapter 28

They had discovered that he could latch both manacles onto one arm and they would still work. That way he didn't have to walk around with handcuffs on. Instead, he just wore his fall robes with longer sleeves to hide the new addition to his uniform. Professor Flitwick and Professor McGonagall had been informed of his condition so they could keep a closer watch in case he needed to step away. They hadn't told Professor Weasley. As much as Harry didn't want to upset the man was on track to be his new favorite Defense teacher, he agreed with the choice. Percy may have turned out to be a boon to the students, but he was still a Ministry Owned Man. Finding out that Harry was a magical powerhouse that only got stronger around other magic would lead to disaster. The Ministry would want to control him at best and try to recreate the process at worst.

Harry walked into the Defense classroom to see that all of the desks had been removed. Instead, there was an open expanse with a row of pedestals along the far wall. Professor Weasley stood in the center of the room. He waited with a patient smile as the class filed in. Harry noted that he had taken to wearing pin-stripe robes like Fudge had worn the last time he had seen him.

"Welcome, welcome." Professor Weasley called as the students entered. "We did the theory, so today is the practical. I'll demonstrate the spell then we will form lines and practice on the targets."

He scanned the crowd to make sure the students were all paying attention.

"We discussed the flare spell." Professor Weasley continued. "It is an important one to know as it can signal danger, mark the location of an injured person, or, if need be, work as a low-powered offense. Aurors use them quite frequently in their daily patrols for all three. A Flare, while not as powerful as a Stunner, is an effective deterrent to escalate a hostile encounter. When struck, it feels like a strong Stinging Hex. It leaves no lasting damage but is known to cause brief localized numbness as well as a feeling of pins and needles in the surrounding area of impact."

Percy paused for the class to take in the words.

"The wand movement is simple, and the incantation is shorter than a stunner as well." Percy continued. "Can anyone, aside from Miss Granger, tell me how the Flare is inferior to a stunner."

He mentioned Hermione with a small smile to acknowledge her intelligence without belittling her enthusiasm.

"It's not as accurate." Ron spoke up.

Harry looked at his friend in shock.

"Five points to Gryffindor, Mister Weasley." Percy nodded. "Correct. The Flare is used primarily to mark location. The sky is an easy target to hit."

Ron preened at the attention.

"Anyone else?" Percy asked. "Miss Granger, you're free to chime in now."

Hermione blushed.

"A Stunner is safer." Parvati spoke before Hermione could recover.

"Explain and I'll gladly award another five points." Percy teased.

"A Stunner will knock them out and they can't fight or run." Parvati twirled her hair as she spoke, there was a slight color to her cheeks as well. "The Flare would just smack them up a bit."

"Five points." Percy said. "Please attend carefully." He turned toward the pedestals where a large circular target popped up into view. His wrist flicked upward just barely. "Flo."

An oblong chunk of light launched from the tip of his wand. It wobbled as it moved at a rapid pace toward the target. The spell popped into sparkles as it struck the outer rim of the circle. A couple of people gasped at the sudden flash of light.

"As you can see." Percy turned back toward the class. "Accuracy is not the strong point."

"You could just be rubbish." A voice that sounded like Dean mumbled.

"Five points from Gryffindor." Percy glared at the boy.

Percy turned quickly to the side; his wand snapped up. He sent a Stunner at the same target, and it hit dead center.

"Any spell that you can practice enough can be done silently and with minimal wand movement." Percy explained. "Unfortunately, it is something that cannot be tracked as the process is dependent on the individual rather than power or focus." He took a small, calming breath. "That is a lesson for another day. Line up. The wand movement is a small flick upward and the incantation is Flo. Say it with me."

The entire class repeated the word. From there the students did as they were told. They formed lines and took turns casting the spell. Percy would move from student to student and offer corrections as needed.

"Interesting watch, Mister Potter." Percy commented as he stood beside Harry.

Harry followed his gaze to the gauge on his wrist rather than the manacles on his other arm. He was not sure how he would have explained those. Even with everyone casting around him the readout was mostly yellow with stripes of green valiantly trying to hold on.

"Madam Bones wanted me to keep track of my magic after this summer." Harry explained. The best lies had a bit of truth in them. "She was worried that there might be some unknown side-effects from the encounter with Dementors."

Percy's jaw went tight before he moved on to the next student. Mention of the Dementors soured the Professor for a brief moment. Ever the professional, Percy got himself in order and was back on form by the end of class.

"Friday will be review." Professor Weasley called as the class ended. "The Essay will be Twelve-Inches due on Monday."

"Professor." Ron approached his brother.

Harry stopped by the door to watch his friend. He really hoped that Ron wouldn't mess this up. The relationship between Percy and the rest of the Weasleys hadn't been the best since he had started to work at the Ministry. Arthur and Molly were certain that Fudge took an interest in Percy due to their connection to Dumbledore. Percy thought that meant they didn't think he was worth the attention. Harry wasn't sure how that all worked, family dynamics weren't something he knew much about.

"I just wanted to say." Ron muttered. "You're doing a great job. I heard a few Slytherin yesterday saying you couldn't be a Weasley. From them, I think that was a compliment."

"Thank you, Ronald." Percy gave him a polite nod. "Do you have any questions about the course material?"

"No." Ron shook his head.

"Then you better be off to your next class." Percy started to prepare the room.

Ron walked out of the room with bright, watery eyes. Harry stepped up beside him.

"Are you alright?" Harry whispered.

"Are you kidding me?" Ron looked at him in shock. "He called me Ronald."

Harry tried to read his friend.

"And… that's… good?" Harry guessed.

"Of course, it's good." Ron beamed. "That means he's not mad at me. He still calls Fred and George, Mister Weasley."

Harry smiled.

"Hey, Potter." Pansy seemed to appear out of nowhere.

"What do you want?" Ron and Hermione spoke at the same time.

"Easy there." Pansy rolled her eyes at the two. "I'm just here to see if Potter needs any help." She stepped closer. "You know, like the other day."

"What is she talking about?" Ron asked as he looked from Harry to Hermione and finally to Pansy.

"Nothing." Hermione snapped. "Let's get to class."

"I can't." Harry said before she could drag him away.

"Oh?" Pansy took another step closer to him. The desire in her eyes was obvious.

"I have an appointment at Gringotts." Harry clarified. "I should be back before dinner."

Pansy pouted.

"Let me know if you need my help." Pansy turned and walked away. Her hips had more sway in them than usual. "You know, in case Granger can't handle you again."

On instinct, Ron caught Hermione's raising wand-hand. People always said she was the voice of reason in the group, but she was just as reckless as her friends. Hermione was the one who set Snape on fire, she was the one who punched Draco, and she was the one who captured Rita Skeeter in a jar. Harry was pretty sure she was still blackmailing the reporter. Honestly, she was the scariest of the trio.

"Would you take notes for me, please?" Harry asked Hermione, mostly to distract her.

She would have taken the notes and made sure that both he and Ron had studied them before the weekend. Asking here was polite as well as gave her something other than Pansy to focus on.

"Sure." Hermione replied.

"Thanks." Harry kissed her on the forehead. "You too, Ron."

Ron held up his hands.

"No kisses on the forehead for me." Ron grinned.

"Cheek?" Harry countered.

"Get out of here." Ron chuckled.

Harry hurried off to Dumbledore's office. The gargoyle opened as he approached.

"You're late." The gargoyle called.

"And you are made of stone." Harry replied.

The gargoyle stared at him in confusion.

"Thought we were stating the obvious." Harry stuck his tongue out at the gargoyle as he ran up the stairs.

"Ah, Mister Potter." Dumbledore turned to face him with a smile. "Just on time."

The Floo was already lit and ready. Dumbledore held the case for the manacles. The old man stepped into the flames without another word. Harry followed a moment behind. This time, he managed to land in a crouch rather than on his face. A quick look at his watch showed completely yellow now. Traveling via Floo had washed away the last streaks of green. The trip did feel a little slower this time too.

"Wizard." A goblin stood nearby as the two arrived. "Follow me."

The goblin didn't wait as they turned away. Goblins were fast for such small creatures. Harry and Dumbledore caught up to their guide with a slight jog. The goblin led them into the private offices. Then down some steps and a short elevator ride. It was a rather modern looking one as well. Not the iron gate like the ones at the Ministry.

"Wizard magic isn't the same as Goblin magic." The goblin said as he noticed Harry's attention.

Harry nodded. He didn't know enough about either to really know what that meant. The floor the elevator stopped at was lined with thick wood slabs intricate gold knot-work that stretched the entire length. Each door they passed was made of a mixture of gold, silver, and some type of wood that Harry didn't recognize. Finally, they cam to the end of the hall where the largest of the doors stood.

The goblin opened it easily as though it didn't weigh a metric ton. A group of proud looking goblins stood behind a workbench with a case similar to the one Dumbledore held in the center. While most goblins were in a constant state of disdain when they had to deal with wizards. This group had a glint of something in their eyes that was a mixture of genius and madness. They also wore overalls and leather gloves rather than the fancy suits the others wore.

"Put the case on the table, wizard." One of the worker goblins ordered.

Dumbledore did. "Here you are, Master Rendblade."

The goblin opened the case then gave Harry a pointed look. Harry unlocked the manacles. A wave of power rushed through him. He swayed on his feet. The watch had shifted color to a deep orange with hints of red. He set the manacles in the case and steadied himself on the table.

Master Rendblade and the other workers snickered at his reaction.

"Now." Master Rendblade stared at Harry with a look bordering on malicious. "We have designed a ring as ordered. This will suppress wizard magic."

Harry reached for the box as Dumbledore took a step back.

"Beware." The goblin screeched before Harry could touch it. "It is powerful enough to kill the average wizard. It will strip away his power and leave him as nothing more than a withered husk."

Harry shrugged. He didn't have much of a choice now. Either the burst of magic he felt when he removed the manacles was a delayed impact from everything he had been exposed to before, or it was in response to Goblin magic. No matter the cause, he was fast approaching the release of Wild Magic and he really didn't want to fuck a Goblin.

He opened the case. The ring inside was a silver band that looked to be made of tightly woven individual strands. It appeared as though there was some sort of stone among them.

"It looks nice." Harry lifted the ring with care.

The goblins watched him with hunger in their eyes as he slid it onto his finger. They started to mutter amongst themselves in their native tongue when Harry didn't fall dead before them. Harry ignored them. He turned his attention to his watch. The dark orange had lightened to yellow with small spikes of green around the edges.

"Mister Potter." Dumbledore said. "If the goblins will allow, please cast a spell or two?"

The workers nodded eagerly. They started to get louder as Harry went through a few spells without trouble.

"It works great." Harry said with a satisfied smile.

"May I try as well?" Dumbledore asked. "To make sure the ambient use of magic is managed as well?"

"Of course." Harry nodded.

Dumbledore started with Transfiguration. Even with someone of his power it didn't seem to effect the color much. It was good to know that the response from class wasn’t a fluke. From there, Dumbledore moved to charms. The color of the watch didn't change, but Harry could feel the ring start to vibrate.

"One more." Dumbledore sent a Teeth Cleaning Charm directed at Harry.

A swish of cold air swirled around his mouth. The goblins screamed once the spell hit him. Their ring shattered. Harry checked the watch, just to make sure. It hadn't changed at all.

"That worked great." Harry turned to face the Goblin workers.

The smile on his face dropped as he saw their reaction. Binns had droned on and on about Goblin Wars, but it wasn't until that moment that Harry knew why the creatures were so fearsome.

"No." Master Rendblade barked. "This is not over. I will make a ring that will strip you of your magic, wizard. You will drop dead right here before me."

"Thank you, Master Goblin." Dumbledore inclined his head. "We will eagerly await your next creation. Hogwarts will gladly compensate you for the destroyed product."

"No." The Goblin yelled. "This is not about something as mundane as gold."

The other Goblins in the room gasped. Their guide fainted.

"This is about honor." The Goblin continued to yell. "I will not rest until I have created a ring that will strip the magic from his bones."

"Until next time." Dumbledore placed a firm hand on Harry's shoulder. "We must return to Hogwarts. It is a school day after all."

Harry nodded. He wasn't going to argue with any reason to get out of there.