Chapter six: Discovery

Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

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The match between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor, was followed the next day, by a holiday as it was the thirty-first of October – Halloween. Harry got up that morning and after remembering what day it was, quietly went over to his trunk and opened it to take out the album of his parents' photographs.

For Harry, secretly, Halloween had always been a reminder of his parents' deaths… murders… committed by Voldemort. While everyone was involved in entertainment and merry making, he'd secretly be thinking of the arrival of the anniversary of the hour in which his parents died – and he was left behind in the world as an orphan.

Today again, Harry flipped through the album quietly, finding no other way of paying tribute to his parents' memories on their death anniversary. Like thousands of times before, he wondered how it would be like if Voldemort hadn't ever murdered them…

Downstairs, in the Great Hall, preparation were underway for the Halloween feast and carved pumpkins were being hung from the ceiling. Harry went down to breakfast with Ron, not really intending to do anything particular that day. He was feeling quite sleepy and tired and put it down immediately to his lack of sleep that night. The pain in his scar and that uneasiness while Voldemort had tortured the Malfoys kept him from sleeping and he spent the better part of the night in the Commonroom with Ginny.

'You okay?' Ron asked, noticing Harry's demeanor. 

'Fine,' Harry mumbled, 'just sleepy.'

'I mean… after yesterday?' Ron asked pointedly. Harry had told him everything the previous afternoon.

'I'm okay now,' said Harry, rubbing his arm to check any feeling of pain but it had completely healed long ago.

'Malfoy's not here,' Ron noted, looking over at the Slytherin table. At that moment, the post arrived and Ron's voice was drowned in the flapping of wings and hooting of owls. An owl dropped the Daily Prophet before Harry and flew off.

'What?!' Ron almost choked as he caught sight of the headline on the newspaper. He snatched it up, scanning the page. 'Malfoys slaughtered!'

He turned to Harry, shocked. 'Harry, did you know about this?'

'Dumbledore said it might happen… and it did… last night,' said Harry darkly. 'Believe me, it wasn't good.'

Ron seemed surprised. 'You-know-who… killed the Malfoy's? Draco?!'

'Asked Macnair to do it for him… don't ask how…' said Harry, suddenly feeling sick. The feeling he had been fighting all night, all morning threatened to overpower him. Ron didn't seem too hungry anymore either.   

The news of the murder of the Malfoys spread across Hogwarts like a bush-fire. However, Dumbledore made no comment on it at breakfast, choosing to ignore it. Over at the Slytherin table, Harry noted, there was a strange silence… like a feeling of doom. If he guessed right, the older Slytherins who had links with Voldemort through their families, were reconsidering their stand. If Voldemort could do that to the Malfoys, one of the oldest pureblood families, what could he do to them?

Pushing away his breakfast and muttering something of an excuse to Ron, Harry went outside. His head seemed light and he felt dizzy. He also felt incredibly hot, in October, and went back to the Commonroom.

Ginny and Hermione were coming downstairs for breakfast.

'Harry, are you all right?' Ginny asked Harry, who was sitting in a corner, his eyes closed.

'Feeling a little sleepy. You go on for breakfast, I'll see you later,' he said.

'Okay… I've been feeling a little tired myself…' she said quietly and went off with Hermione.

The Commonroom was quite empty except for a few students hurrying down for breakfast. Harry sat back in the armchair, closing his eyes. The events of the past day… the Quidditch match… the encounter with Malfoy… his injuries… the Malfoys' murder finally caught up with him and, exhausted, he fell asleep.

'C'mon Harry, wake up!'

Someone was shaking his shoulder gently and Harry opened an eye lazily to see Ron bending over him.

'You've just missed lunch! You've been sleeping for hours! Are you sure you're okay?'

Harry sat up, surprised he had slept so long, and shook his head. He felt as if he hadn't slept at all. He was still very drowsy.

'What's up with you?' Ron asked again, concerned. Next to him, Hermione was looking at Harry over a book.

'I'm fine, you two… just sleepy,' said Harry, stretching an arm. He caught sight of Ginny nearby, curled up in an armchair, immersed in a large green book.

'Come on, play some chess with me… Colin's been losing for the past half hour and before that Hermione lost five,' said Ron, grinning. Hermione narrowed her eyes.

'That's because your pieces are brutal,' she said, 'mine are new and they need confidence!'

Ron hid his chuckle and set up the chessboard. Harry yawned.

'I really don't know the point of playing against you, Ron. You know you're going to win.'

Still, Harry and Ron played chess for a while, battling it out on the board.

'You two really ought to pick up on your studying. It's been Quidditch Quidditch for the past two weeks and you've missed out on a lot of revision,' Hermione put in.

'Oh yeah, speaking about Quidditch, Harry, when are you scheduling practices?'

Harry grinned at the scowl on Hermione's face.

'Soon… we've got Hufflepuff in week and I think we need about three practices at the least before that.'

'Ron, have you ever thought of what you're going to do after school?' Hermione demanded, not giving up. 'You can't make an earning babbling about Quidditch!'

'Later, Hermione, the newts are ages away!'

'It's N.E.W.Ts, not newts!' Hermione said in a huff, putting down her book. 'Why do you be serious about your career? Have you ever though –'

'Auror, that's what I'll become,' said Ron quickly. Hermione rolled her eyes.

'And how, may I ask, will they accept you at the Auror Training Institute, if you haven't even passed Defense Against The Dark Arts properly? You'll need high scores in the N.E.W.T.s, especially in Charms to make it into Auror training.'

'Well, then maybe not Auror –'

'See, you're not even sure of what you are going to do!'

At this point, Harry detached himself from Ron and Hermione, knowing they'd go on like that for a while. He looked over at Ginny. How could she read with the book right in her face?

He went over to her and moved the book away to see her eyes closed, sleeping peacefully. He closed the book and tucked it beside her, yawned again and then, decided to go upstairs and get his Firebolt. He needed to clear up his sleepy head… and, he thought, he'd better rescue Ron from Hermione soon.

Quidditch did indeed help, Harry decided, to do away with his drowsiness. Even if Ron was ranting on about Hermione and the career she was imposing on him, all the way from across the field, it was pretty much relaxing. It also gave him time to think properly about the fate of the Malfoys… they existed no more and Harry shuddered, remembering Voldemort's words to Macnair and Lucius.

When Harry finally returned to the ground after flying for over an hour, there was a charged feeling about him. His fingers and toes tingled as if full of energy and as he stretched, breathing in deeply, goose pimples broke across his skin and a shiver ran down his spine. He wondered if it was simply because of the cool breeze? He stretched, now just over six feet high at the age of seventeen, no longer the scrawny boy of eleven who had started at Hogwarts. Even as he took a step forward, he felt as if he had leapt… or could do so. It was amazing and for a moment, Harry wondered if wee just imagining it? It wasn't' because of his powers, was it? No, he thought, he was perfectly normal… his powers were bottle within. He was thinking about it when Ron landed next to him with a soft 'thump'.

'So, Harry, what are you going to do after Hogwarts?'

Harry decided he hadn't really thought of that but the answer came to him easily.

'I'll probably be… joining the war or something,' said Harry, looking at the ground. Even though he said it casually, Harry meant every word and he was determined to put in every effort for the battle against Voldemort.

'Same here, I suppose,' Ron said, after a moment, 'Auror or something… we'll all be helping out with that.' There was a long silence after that, neither knowing what to say.

'How long do you think it could take Harry?' Ron asked. Harry stared ahead… it depended on a lot of things.

'I don't know… it's getting rough out there, isn't it? They say he's back to power completely… he's going to stop at nothing.'

'Fred and George are already out there and I, kind of, miss them… they owl sometimes but they don't… seem the same anymore,' said Ron quietly.

'Sirius rarely owls… last I heard from him was the day we were returning to Hogwarts,' said Harry, 'right now, it's a no-win situation out there.'

'We haven't got much power, have we? All the wizards and witches fighting out there right now… no one can overpower You-Know-Who,' said Ron slowly, thinking of his parents and brothers.

Power, thought Harry. The only way to defeat Voldemort was to counter him… face him as an equal and the Order of Phoenix – those against Voldemort – currently, had no one to do that. That put the Order in a very dangerous position indeed.

The Halloween feast was highly enjoyed by everyone at Hogwarts, except for a majority of the Slytherins who were still rather shaken by the murders of the Malfoys.

However, Harry found himself unable to eat. He had hardly eaten all day and again, he felt as if he was full. Everyone around him ate heartily, enjoying the feast while he mostly pushed his food around on his plate, listening to some Halloween jokes told by Dean Thomas. He found he wasn't too interested and even when Ron guffawed, Harry merely smiled. He wanted to drop off to sleep again.

He glanced at Ginny to find her talking quietly with one of her friends. However, she too, after a moment, stifled a yawn with her hand.

Both of them were quite bored and he wondered if he'd be able to take her away somewhere for a little while. He hadn't been able to talk to her properly the whole day.

As soon as the feast was over, Harry got up from the table and headed back to Gryffindor Tower. He decided to change before seeing Ginny and went up to his dormitory.

All the other boys were still at the feast and the dormitory was deserted and dark. Harry went over to the window, looking out at the night sky, the moon hidden behind the clouds. Strangely, his fingers were still tingling, as if with a small spark, ready to ignite into flames. He settled on the window ledge for a moment, trying to figure out what was going on with him that day, since the morning.

He looked out of the window at the grounds, the shadows of the trees from the Forbidden forest, falling across the graying grass when the moon came out. The lake was visible beyond, the water unmoving, silent, as if waiting for something…

Harry felt warm suddenly, like he had at breakfast… only, he was becoming increasingly warm, uncomfortably so. He looked at his hands and gasped in surprise. They seemed to be glowing… in fact, as he looked down at himself, he found was glowing white all over. It was as if a white light shone from him and as he became increasingly warm, the brightness increased, becoming more and more silvery. In fact, now it almost sparkled and he was illuminating the whole dormitory. The window ledge, the grill, everything became hot. He jumped off the ledge, staring at his fingers and legs, shocked beyond words.

He went over to the window and found he couldn't even look at himself in it due to the brightness. But now, with the brightness and warmth, came pain. Red-hot pain originated within his chest and spread to his head and limbs. Suddenly, his entire body was on fire, all-consuming, enveloping. He couldn't even cry out with pain, so severe it suddenly was. It was as if he was absorbing heat and energy from all around him until he was full to bursting.

Harry staggered back, his fists clenched. Suddenly, the pain magnified manifold and even though Harry tried to fight whatever was rousing within him, it instead took over him. There was a brief glow of gold from his skin and the next moment, he was on the ground, completely still.

Harry opened his eyes, feeling as if he hadn't closed them at all. But now, he was in a different surrounding. It was Dumbledore's office and he found himself lying on a makeshift bed. As he looked around, lying perfectly still, he saw Ginny and Dumbledore, talking in low voices in the corner. Ginny was sitting in a chair, while Dumbledore stood next to her, his back to Harry.

'I thought something was wrong and by the time I got there, he was lying on the floor, with his skin glowing white,' said Ginny, sounding very amazed.

Harry sat up slowly and Ginny's gaze flicked over to him. Dumbledore turned around.

'Ah Harry!'

Harry shook his head; it felt stiff and heavy.

'How are you feeling?'

'I'm fine,' said Harry, amazed that he truly was. After what had happened in his dormitory, he expected that he'd be changed for life… that experience had been truly amazing and had made him feel as if he'd never be the same again. He looked up at Dumbledore with wonder.

'I… I don't know what happened.'

'Ms. Weasley has just told me her part… after she found you in your dormitory. Would you like to tell me what happened?'

And Harry related everything, including the drowsiness he had been feeling and that feeling of energy after he had played Quidditch. He also told him the amazing, unexplainable experience in his dormitory.

'I… I thought you weren't well,' said Ginny, 'and you slept a lot today.'

Dumbledore sat down in his chair behind the large desk, motioning to Harry and Ginny to sit down on opposite chairs.

'Harry, I have never until now, encountered an experience like that of yours so I have little knowledge of what may have happened. How do you feel?'

'I feel the same,' said Harry simply. 'I really have no idea of what happened.''

'Ginny, you said you felt something,' said Dumbledore.

'Yes… it was like… some type of energy. I only sense that when Harry's using his powers… like when he's angry. I thought something was wrong so I went to find him.'

Dumbledore was quiet for a moment.

'Harry,' he said at length, 'you know the Summoning charm quite well?'

'Yes, Professor,' said Harry, surprised at the question.

'I want you to summon that purple book,' he pointed to a book on the first shelf of a rack in the corner.

Harry took out his wand. 'Accio!' He said and the book flew into his hands.

'Good,' said Dumbledore calmly, 'now… summon a copy of that book… also in purple, in the first shelf. Without your wand.'

Harry turned to Dumbledore with surprise.

'Yes, Harry, go on, try it. My suspicions may very well be confirmed.'

Apprehensive, Harry turned in his chair, held out his hand awkwardly. 'Accio!'

What happened was entirely unpredicted even by Dumbledore. All the books in the bookrack jumped off and zoomed to Harry, falling on top of him. Ginny jumped away in amazement. After the avalanche of books had stopped, Harry looked up, his eyes wide.

'Look,' said Dumbledore, now smiling, pointing to Harry's hand. It had begun to glow white.

'Professor, this… what is this?' Harry asked, amazed.

'Wand-less magic, extremely strong, I must say. I have yet to see anything quite like it,' said Dumbledore, much more seriously. He stood up and crossed over to Harry.

'Harry, tonight is the anniversary of the night your parents died… and two spectacular things happened, tonight, sixteen years ago. You gained the protection of your mother, which had signs of ancient magic in it and you survived Voldemort, inheriting some of his powers. I believe that tonight, once again, you have been given power – more than you ever had.'

'How? Why? I didn't do anything… and why today?'

'Maybe it is because your own powers have been building up… ever since you and Ginny began sharing the same soul. It has caused a spurt in both of your powers, even more in you Harry because of your magical experiences the night your parents died. Tonight, on the anniversary of that night, you have been given more power.'

Harry looked down at his hands. Then, he turned to Ginny. 'Can… can you do it too?'

Ginny turned to one of the books lying on the floor around Harry. She held out a hand. 'Wingardium Leviosa!'

She gasped as all the books on the floor suddenly rose up, hanging in the air above herself and Harry. She flicked her wrist and the books toppled down once more, one of them hitting Harry on the head. She giggled nervously.

'This is very good,' said Dumbledore, obviously pleased. 'I must say I never expected anything like this to happen. And of such magnitude. Wand-less magic is extremely difficult to perform and requires a lot of will power. However, it comes very easily to the two of you.'

Both Harry and Ginny were silent for a few moments, letting Dumbledore's words sink in.

'But Professor, what do we do? Isn't this power dangerous? I had to work very hard to keep my own powers at bay and these are uncontrollable.'

'Harry, Ginny, ' said Dumbledore slowly, 'these powers are now a part of you. Controlling them, releasing them, using them is now part of your will. Wand-less magic has all to do with your will. Wands are a means of doing magic… now, that ability being part of your very skin, is under your control at all times. Controlling it is like controlling yourself… if I guess correctly, whenever your emotions go to extreme, so will your power. However, if you work on it very well and develop it properly, it will be in your power to summon it as and when you want to, in whichever form or of whatever magnitude you want to.'

Harry was quite struck by that information and for a moment, he could say nothing. He looked across at Ginny and she smiled slightly back at him. However, he could see the nervousness and initial fear in her eyes at being granted something so big.

'And…' she said slowly, looking at Harry, 'what if… we work together?'

'Both of you share a soul… which is why both of you have the ability of form this type of magic. However, I will not be surprised if Harry's abilities surpass yours in some amount. But… a combination of your powers should be quite spectacular. I can rightly say that it may be very difficult to achieve for combination of magical power requires great concentration and hard work. It can also, be possible, only when the power is in its extremes.'

'Professor, what do we do? Can't we use this power to help with the war effort?'

'Not now, Harry,' said Dumbledore. 'Right now, your education is the most important. Your will take your place in the way when the right time comes. But, whenever that happens, I am sure you know that it will be a most important role… especially considering this latest discovery.'

Harry and Ginny nodded grimly. Harry looked at her with some surprise but before he could say anything, Dumbledore said,

'But one thing you both must remember. Keep this discovery secret… for however long you can – even from Ron and Hermione. We cannot afford for this news to spread, do you understand? I want you to use your wands at all times…  except in cases of emergency.'

Harry and Ginny nodded again, understanding every word.

'Thank you,' said Dumbledore, smiling. 'Now, if you will excuse me, I have to send out a few letters. The Order certainly has to be notified of this. Remember my words… and strive to develop your powers… and use them for good… as I know you will.'

Harry and Ginny got up.

'And either of you… if you have any problem regarding this… or any further discovery, please come to me at the earliest. I wish you the best of luck.'

Harry and Ginny turned for the door.

'And Harry,' said Dumbledore, 'I want you to come to me again tomorrow, with Ginny, at two o' clock in the afternoon.'

'About these powers, Professor?' Ginny asked. Dumbledore smiled.

'You shall find out for yourself.'

Harry and Ginny walked back in silence, neither knowing what to say. Their thoughts were mixed, basically trying to digest Dumbledore's words to them. Nearing the Fat Lady, Harry slowed down.

'Do you want to go in yet?'

Ginny hesitated. 'Well… yes, I don't really feel like going in immediately.'

They went back up to their 'secret' place, on top of a secluded tower. However, as it had grown quite chilly, they sat in the topmost room instead of the roof of the tower.

'What do you think of this?' Harry asked, glancing at her uncomfortably.

'It's amazing, to tell the truth,' said Ginny, smiling, 'even if it is a bit scary.'

'This changes everything, doesn't it?' said Harry thoughtfully. Something had been on his mind ever since he had found out he could now perform wand-less magic.

'What?'

'The war, I mean,' he slowly. 'It's what we need most. Power.'

'Harry, Dumbledore said we don't have to join the war yet,' Ginny said, looking at him with seriousness. Harry looked up at that, ready to say something about her use of 'we' but she continued before he could say anything.

'You've got a whole year to complete…'

'But so many are dying out there right now,' said Harry, frustrated, 'what's the whole point of waiting? What good does it do?'

'If Dumbledore thinks it's best that we don't… he's right. This is all so new… I hardly know what to do with these powers or how far they can go.'

'Ginny, your brothers are out there… if I join them now, we could save so many…'

'And what if Voldemort gets us first? We don't know anything about war yet… and it's not only about you, Harry. Yes, my brothers are out there… and I am worried but that doesn't make me ready to go out there and battle!'

Ginny's brow furrowed in irritation. Harry sighed, running his fingers through his hair.

'You're… right,' he said slowly. 'It's just… that I can't just sit here, doing nothing.'

Ginny turned to him. 'We can do something… we could work on our powers… so that when the time comes, we'll be ready.'

Harry saw the look of determination on her face. 'You really want to?'

'Why wouldn't' I? Of course, I want to… we could… practice right here.'

Harry took her hand. 'It could be dangerous.'

'It's only you and me… and we've got to learn to control this someday. I felt quite sick tonight… and you passed out too. We can't let this take over us… we've got to harness it somehow.'

Harry nodded. 'I feel you know more about this than I do.'

'No, I don't, I'm jus as clueless as you are… but I'm probably looking at the brighter side of things,' said Ginny, smiling.

'Fine, I'll try that too. If you're not tired, do you want to start now?' Harry asked.

'Now? That is fast… sure,' said Ginny, grinning. They got to their feet, smoothing their robes.

'How about starting with simple things?' Harry asked.

Ginny nodded and raised her hand. 'Lumos.'

All the candles in the little room lit up.

'Hey, I was going to do that,' said, feigning anger, 'Nox.'

The room fell into darkness.

'Very funny, Mr. Potter,' said Ginny and stepped towards the window, where there was a small beam of moonlight. Harry saw her smile mischievously in his direction, raised her hand and as it momentarily glowed silver, she whispered, 'Furnunculus.'

Harry gave a small cry as spots appeared all over his face but closing his eyes, concentrating hard, he was able to make them vanish.

'Nothing much,' he said haughtily, stepping closer to her.

'Orchideus,' he said under his breath, waving his hand. A lovely fragrance filled the room suddenly and Ginny whispered, 'Lumous,' to see flowers of numerous types covering the circular walls and the floor around them lavishly.

'Impressive,' she whispered, 'but not quite…' She turned to Harry. 'Reducio.'

Harry's eyeglasses suddenly shrank, falling off his nose and onto his palm. He chuckled, fixing them back.

'Ginny, I think we need to move on… we learned that when we were first years.'

He grinned suddenly and Ginny saw mischief in his eyes. 'Petrificus Totalus.'

Ginny's limbs snapped to her sides and she fell back on the beds of white roses on the floor. Her eyes sparkled with mirth even though she was not able to say a word. Closing her eyes, she thought hard, whispering, in her mind, 'Finite Incantatem.'

But as she got free, Harry was already kneeling down beside her.

'I didn't know you could do that…' he said with wonder.

'It is wand-less magic,' she said, grinning up at him from the floor. She held up her hand suddenly. 'Petrificus Totalus!'

Harry, kneeling down beside her, suddenly went rigid but his eyes were now mocking her, apparently telling her off for using the same spell he had used on her, on him. But Ginny apparently had other plans. Before Harry could work on the counter spell, she sat up, scooted closer, placed a hand on his cheek and reached up to kiss him.   

His mind became a whirlpool but somehow, he released himself from the Full Body Bind and kissed her back.

'You know,' she said, pulling back after a few moments, 'I could get used to this wand-less magic.'

And Harry could only chuckle at her.  

Author's Notes:

It's been a very long time since I posted and it's mainly because… I wanted to space out the chapters. Anyways, no fret! It's here now and the next one's ready as well. I promise, I'll post it up by Thursday.

Apart from that, HP2 is OUT! I get to see it tomorrow at my friend's place! She's got the DVD!

Sorry, I lost control over there… excitement getting to me!

Meanwhile, DO review! DO DO DO! It makes me put up the chapters faster!

Toodloo!

-Ameera Khan

ameerak86@hotmail.com