Chapter 37 – Am I a Fierce Warrior or a Guidance Counsellor?

That ended the press conference and we headed back to Hogwarts. We arrived at the Gryffindor common room to find ourselves very much in demand. Jimmy Peakes urgently needed to speak to us. He would return from his last morning class in a half hour. Erin left a note expressing her 'desperation to speak to you, right away, on a matter of great personal urgency', for which I read the possibility of a Draco reunion with his wife. There was another note, left by Professor Celine, expressing a need to see us today, if we returned to Hogwarts. We were invited to her apartment after lunch. There was also a message that Draco was 'confused and need to speak to you, ASAP.' We sat down to relax, before Jimmy returned, but my butt had no sooner entered the comfy chair centered in front of the fire, when the headmaster entered the common room to leave a note, drawing up short as she saw us.

"I was going to leave a note, but since you're here, I'd like to speak with you immediately. Harry first and then Ginny, in my office, if you please. Don't worry, Mrs. Potter, I don't have a huge favour to wheedle out of your husband in a susceptible moment."

Looking at Harry, she stopped and changed course. "Alright, the two of you can come along together. Then I'll want to speak to Ron and Hermione. Two at once is definitely the most that I can handle."

As we were rising to leave, Alice and Cissy begged a word. I pointed to the headmaster in apology, mouthing 'later', but Hermione volunteered to chat with them.

Professor McGonagall didn't say a word until she was seated in her big desk chair and we had been motioned into the chairs in front of her desk. "I didn't get to say as much as I wanted, really I didn't get to say anything, when I stopped by your table. I want to thank you for agreeing to interview Pansy. I understand that you've concluded that she isn't as guilty as she originally appeared to be. I understand her mother set her up, in the guise of protecting her. That was a nasty business. Xenophilius had the full transcript of the recording in this morning's Quibbler. I'm sure you're considering releasing Pansy. Spending more time locked up with her mother as her sole companion will not be helpful at all. Her mother just can't let go and she'll destroy Pansy. She almost did."

"Pansy has already been moved to separate housing," Harry reported. "All that we have decided about Pansy is that as her victims, we will talk to the Minister and Madam Bones and say that we believe she was not as guilty as we had thought, and that we would support a greatly reduced sentence. In talking to Pansy, we suggested that she might be released in half a year," Harry replied.

"I know I seem very persistent on this subject, but I'd have thought you learned enough over the past two days to call for Pansy's immediate release. I hear she and Draco are talking. I had hoped that you would change your mind and allow her to return to Hogwarts, if Draco is willing to try getting back together with her."

"I think at the very least that Draco has some talking to do with Erin," I replied. "Having Pansy at Hogwarts would be painful to Hermione. I don't think I'd enjoy it either."

"So, where is Pansy and how long is she likely to be confined there?" McGonagall just kept pushing us.

"Can't say and don't know," Harry responded. "We haven't even spoken to the Minister, yet, and still have things to follow up from our meetings with Pansy, her mother, and the surprisingly loquacious Rita Skeeter. Apparently, Delores Umbridge has visited the Ministry. Also, apparently, the kidnapping plot was originally scheduled to unfold on the night you invited Lucius to dinner. Clearly, Umbridge had a part in that. I'm not sure which other Hogwarts residents did as well. We've got to head back to Gryffindor. Jimmy Peakes and some others seem desperate to speak to us. Then we're meeting Professor Celine at her apartment, after lunch."

"Very well, Mr. Potter, I understand by the Minister's rules that I may continue to call you Mr. Potter here at Hogwarts."

"That is my understanding as well, but you should realise that I associate its use with times that you are angry or exasperated by me or are trying to manipulate me – usually to do something that is not in my, or the Minister's best interest. You should know that it is not all that productive an approach. A simple Harry will do just fine."

"Alright, Harry, I'll just leave you with the thought that as bad as her mother's company is for Pansy, being confined with only an Elf to interact with and a rotation of aloof aurors is likely worse and will cause her to be depressed and withdrawn. That is essentially solitary confinement, which should be reserved for only the worst criminals."

"I think that you vastly exaggerate Pansy's plight. She has a single young female auror, with whom she may develop some level of rapport. We're also going to arrange for Hermione's mother to look in on her and help her sort out her thoughts and emotions. Pansy is very confused, perhaps confused enough to be a danger to others or herself. Normally, I'd consider allowing Millicent Bulstrode to visit, but she's in jail and, even when she's released, which Madam Bones suggests will happen soon, I no longer trust her. Any young Witch who would try to murder her Elf is either a hard-core political opponent or mentally deranged.

"Of course, Draco is free to visit Pansy. I'm not all that concerned about Pansy trying to escape I doubt she has the aptitude for avoiding a quick recapture. I feel it is important for her personal safety that she be somewhat isolated and with her location unknown. I also believe that this will help her in the necessary sorting out of her true memories from the false ones implanted in her. She needs to decide which side and which individuals she is willing to support, and whom she will oppose. Trust me when I tell you that I, and Doctor White shares my view, do not believe Pansy is ready to be released just yet. There may well be other little bombs planted in her mind and waiting to explode. She seems to have been more than simply Imperiused."

McGonagall looked at Harry a little sceptically but took a reasonable tone. "Millicent is basically a good girl. Dumbledore left a file on her, if you'd care to read it. I will certainly encourage Mrs. Granger to visit Pansy. I've asked Professor Celine to refrain from inviting any more students to her apartment but told her that I didn't object to her having the eighth years over on occasion. I think she behaved very unwisely with Jimmy, but he certainly mis-stepped. I would have expected more self-awareness and control from him. I'm thinking he may not have been ready to be Quidditch Captain."

"He certainly wasn't ready to be Captain, but you have to somewhat excuse his actions," I told the headmaster. "I'm sure you realise that Professor Celine is a Siren, and Jimmy was no more prepared to deal with a Siren than my brother Ron was to deal with the Veelas from Beauxbatons. You really should warn schoolboys before surprising them with such temptations."

"You may be right, Mrs. Potter. More caution might have been wise. Still, I recall Dumbledore gave no warning when he added a werewolf to the faculty. It's a fine line balancing the privacy of the staff against the susceptibility of some students. Professor Celine was brought here as much to recover her equilibrium as to add some fresh thinking to the school. She was in a quite fragile state and I doubt it would have helped her healing to introduce her as some sort of freak.

"Before you go, and I strongly approve of you chatting with Jimmy and Professor Celine, I also have some messages directly for you."

I sat forward, as the headmaster continued. "Two events have snuck up on me. First, the representatives from Beauxbatons, Durmstrang, and the Irish academy will be arriving tomorrow, and we will have a welcoming banquet tomorrow night. The day after tomorrow, we will have the planning meeting for the Quidditch Tournament. As the Hogwarts Quidditch Captain, you should attend that meeting. Second, we are a week from All Hallows' Day. As part of our celebration I have asked my Priestess friends to attend and discuss the old religions with the students. I was hoping that you, and the other students who met the Light Guardian, would participate and lead seminars. You wouldn't be identified as the Mother of the Future, but as an intimate of the Light Guardian."

"I'll make myself available for both of those events," I promised the headmaster. "I assume there will be a planning meeting regarding the All Hallows' Day seminar."

"Yes, that will be in the evening, the day after tomorrow, after the representatives from the other Wizarding schools have departed. The Priestesses will be here for dinner on that day."

My first words to Jimmy were "do you know what a Siren is, Jimmy?" Receiving a blank look in reply, I filled him in on the history and powers of the Sirens. I ended with "while this partially explains your loss of control and subsequent actions, it does not completely wash away your responsibility for truly reprehensible behaviour. I'm sure the headmaster will tell you that.

"Now that you are better able to understand your actions, you can make sure they aren't repeated and try to undo as much of the damage as you can. I suggest a return to Quidditch to take your mind off Professor Celine. I'd like you to play on the Hogwarts team in the upcoming tournament. There will be a try-out, of course, but I think you're good enough to make the team. Now, what did you want to talk to us about?"

"You covered most of it. I wanted you to know that I was able to remove all the paint that I put on top of Professor Celine's self-portrait. There's a very small amount of damage, for which I am extremely sorry. I loved that painting and never wanted to damage it. Your talk of the Sirens makes sense. I guess I never was as interested in Professor Celine as I was in the Adrienne in that painting. I know I must stay away from Professor Celine, but I'm desperate to keep improving my artistic skills. I was hoping that you and Harry could stay in her class and club and serve as a safe go-between for me. You know, let me know what Professor Celine teaches, bring me art supplies to work on in the dorm, and take my finished products back to the Professor for her criticism and suggestions."

"Good idea, but wrong targets," I told him. "Harry and I are too overcommitted to take on another tutoring situation. There are lots of young Witches in the club, who are way more age appropriate for you than Professor Celine, and whom I suspect will be quite willing to help you, if you're cool and don't creep them out. I really didn't understand how you could be the only single Wizard in that club of dedicated Witch artists, be the best artist of all of us, and not come out of it with a girlfriend."

"I was besotted with Adrienne. Now I've made a fool of myself, which will make me even shyer around the others. Besides that, I'm still a little shy around young Witches."

"Tell yourself you're a Quidditch star, and bravery comes naturally. And, by the way, I expect not to see you crying again. I can't have that on my team. I'll do you one perhaps favour, although I think it is assistance, you're better off without. I'll go to the club this week and generally drop the word that you need a tutor, or go between, or whatever you want to call it. I'll ask that the volunteers contact you directly. You'll have to handle it from there on your own."

{[amused] I don't mind attending art club again. I wasn't aware that you knew about the Sirens.}

{{Hermione looked it up in the Ministry library.}}

Harry decided that we couldn't possibly deal with Erin before finding out where Draco's head was at, so we set off for his apartment. He wasn't there, but we soon tracked him down at his mother's apartment. We had fifteen minutes before lunch, where running into Erin would be unavoidable. I let Harry take the lead with Draco, since Draco was more comfortable with Harry than with me.

"Your note said you were confused, which certainly isn't surprising under the circumstances. Have you spoken to Erin?" Harry asked. "She's next on our list of people who want to talk to us."

"I know I need to decide who I want to be with. I'm married to Pansy and we have a lot of history together, and I thought we knew each other well. I sort of still love her, but I also sort of still hate her. I'm not as sure as I was who the real Pansy is. My father has been mixed up with Pansy in one way or another, since before I met her. I'm not sure if I can deal with that, but then I'm also not sure what I think of my father. It would help to learn more about how he died and his involvement in recent plots, especially exactly when he was no longer fully in control of his mind. He said some very hateful things to me that I really need to know whether the real Lucius meant. The problem is they're not all that different, other than degree, in things he's said before. He's never been an encouraging, understanding father. I was hoping you would help me figure this out, since I know you're also thinking about it. I know you also have at least a little suspicion that my mother was involved in his death. I don't believe she was, but I need to know for certain.

"I know that Ginny is on the Ministry education committee and that you're also interested in the Hogwarts changes. I should talk to you about that. You really don't understand Slytherin, or its place in Hogwarts, or even how the aristocrat families view Hogwarts. It's pretty much our secret. I'm no longer Slytherin, or at least I can't be until things change, so I'm willing to fill in some of the gaps in your knowledge. You've probably wondered why my father permitted Dumbledore to be headmaster for so many years. There actually is a very good reason, but now is not the time. I should be focused on Pansy and what I want to do about her.

"Then there is Erin. I don't know her that well, but I like her quite a lot and am growing closer to her, which is causing friction with my mother. Mother is not at all happy with a girlfriend who comes already pregnant. It doesn't matter that much to me. I wish I had a little more time to get to know Erin better, before I must decide about Pansy. I'm not asking you to delay her release - I just need a little advance warning on the schedule, so I know how much time I've got. I'd also like to visit Pansy and try to better figure out what the real Pansy thinks, and how much of her recent actions and statements were voluntary and in line with what she really thinks."

"I don't know when Pansy will be released. Almost certainly not in the next two or three weeks, the doctors still have work to do with her. I think it will be at least several days until you can meet her again, but I'll let you know as soon as it's possible. So, you have some time to focus on Erin. I'm willing to share thoughts on your mother and what happened to your father, but can we save that for a later day?

"I think you should move out of your mother's apartment. Go to your own apartment or back to Hufflepuff. If your mother has that strong a view of Erin, she's not going to be a help in making your decision. If you have doubts about your mother and she is a strong Pansy supporter, staying around her doubly won't help you reach the right decision.

"We're going to art club this week, why don't you join us. The portraits that you and Pansy did of each other certainly caused some thinking. Perhaps you and Erin should paint each other. We think that Erin will probably try to corner us at lunch. It would be awkward to walk into the Great Hall with you. Can you give us a five-minute head start?"

Harry's hunch was correct. Erin was waiting at the entrance to the Great Hall and snagged us as soon as we rounded the corner. "Let's get some food at the Gryffindor table and then head over to the empty Slytherin table," I suggested.

"This is awkward. I was hoping to talk to Harry, alone."

I think the tone of my reply conveyed in a friendly way that this was not going to happen.

{[surprise] You're not jealous of Erin, are you?}

{{No, but I hadn't sorted out my truth teller skills prior to our other conversations with Erin. I want to get a better read on just how innocent she is and how opportunistic her interest in Draco is.}}

{[understanding] Good, have at it.}

We said hello to the early arrivals at the Gryffindor table, as we gathered plates of food. Hermione and Ron had not arrived yet, so we led Erin over to the vacant Slytherin table. She didn't speak until we were all settled in at the table.

"I'm sorry to ambush you at the door, but I'm desperate and didn't want to miss you. You were there when Draco talked to Pansy at her interview. I'm worried that Draco will want to go back to Pansy. I thought Draco and I were getting along well, developing a solid relationship, but now I just don't know. It had seemed that he had pushed her out of his mind and was determined to get a quick divorce. Now everything seems so up in the air and I heard the headmaster commenting to Mrs. Malfoy that Pansy 'should be back at Hogwarts very soon'. Draco has been so withdrawn since he got back from seeing Pansy. I'm very worried and yet it seems selfish to be so upset about a married couple possibly getting back together again. Yet, it seems unfair that she gets a second chance, after everything that she's done."

"Well," I replied "it looks as though Pansy may well have been Imperiused when she did what she did. You're getting a second chance after being a minor player in the same plot. But you were duped by Silas, weren't you?"

"Yes, I had totally the wrong impression of him. I was sure he loved me and wanted nothing more than to be a good husband, father, and Ministry employee. When you explain it like that, I see Pansy is deserving of consideration."

"Yes, during the Voldemort wars, many Wizards did things that they normally wouldn't have done, had they not been confunded or Imperiused. Do you think you were confunded or Imperiused by Silas?"

"No, I don't remember anything like that. Isn't your mind supposed to instantly clear upon the death of the person who Imperiused you? I didn't feel any different after Silas died. I didn't even know he had died, until Harry told me."

Harry stepped in to ask, "There are other ways of controlling a mind. Perhaps Silas slipped you a love potion?"

"I don't think so. You'd know, wouldn't you?"

"It wouldn't be a very good potion if the victim was aware of being drugged. Sometimes, like when my friend Ron got too big a dose and almost died, it was obvious that someone had slipped a potion into a box of candies. I think that's the exception, though. You might know in retrospect, after the potion wore off, if your love for the person seemed to come on almost instantly, especially if you hadn't felt at all attracted to the person, prior to that time. Does that seem to describe how you fell for Silas?"

"I don't think so, well maybe. I noticed him before and thought he was handsome, then one day I just got a notion to flirt with him, I mean obviously. Things moved very fast after that. But I want to talk about Draco. Do you think he'll go back to Pansy?"

"Draco is confused and doesn't know what he thinks," Harry tried to be encouraging. "He certainly hasn't decided to go back to Pansy. I know it's not what you want to hear, but Draco needs time to think things over. You're going to have to be patient. There is still a lot that isn't known about the last days of Draco's father, and that is all mixed up in Draco's confusion. In terms of timing, I'd be surprised if Pansy were released within a month, and it is not at all a sure thing that she'll return to Hogwarts this term, even if she is released. I know that just waiting can be the most difficult thing to do, especially for something that's as important as this is to you. It gives you time to clarify your own thinking. Your relationship with Draco has moved very fast. Are you certain that he's the one for you? Are you sure that you love him? Can you live with the long trips he'll need to make into the Muggle world to get the family business re-established?"

"Yes, to all of that. I know that I love Draco and we get along so well together. He's so smart, and patient, and determined, and sympathetic, and loving."

"I don't remember Draco as being particularly patient," I couldn't help chiming in.

"He is. He says he's a different person without his parents trying to control him and fighting over him. He says he feels adult for the first time in his life. His mother thinks I'm the cause of the difference, but I really don't think I am. She's upset that he's gotten so religious. That's the Light Guardian, not me, but I'm perfectly happy with that. He's taught me a lot about the old Witch religions."

I interrupted my eating to comment again "You'll get to know more. We're going to have meetings on the old religions to celebrate All Hallows' Day. The headmaster has invited her Priestess friends and I'm going to lead a seminar."

"That sounds very interesting. I'm looking forward to it."

As we walked away from the table, Harry messaged me {Well, was she truthful?}

"Totally," I replied in the open, to Erin's confusion.

Our meeting with Professor Celine was pushed to after dinner, as we had to meet with Draco to dispel his curiosity about our meeting with Erin.

Hermione had a surprise for us, when we returned to our common room. "I'm working hard on translating the runes and Madam Babbling has been a help, but it's really slow going. I thought there might possibly be something that could help me in the Peverell storage room or even in the Ministry museum. The Minister agreed that this was worth exploring, but that the runes must be my top priority until we know for sure what happened to Baal. He agreed to loan me Ellie to help sort through the Peverell stuff. I didn't just volunteer her – I spoke to her, before I spoke to the Minister. She is VERY eager to do some more actual curator work and get away from the dusting and tea fetching. The old curator wasn't as cleanly retired as the Minister said. She still has a month to go, so Ellie's appointment, all except the part dealing with Muggle technology must wait that month. She was desperate to get away from the old curator, who blames her for her ouster, and has been rather punitive. Ellie said she would be happy to search her mind for anything related to old runes stored at the museum. She'll take me to view the appropriate artefacts, when she has her memories sorted out. The curator wasn't at all happy about all of this, but she is just a nasty old Witch who can do her own dusting and fetch her own tea for a while. I told her that I had the Minister's permission to borrow Ellie. So there!"