Control

Disclaimer: Harry Potter, all related characters, locations, and events, are owned by Warner Brothers, J.K. Rowling, and multiple parties. No infringement is intended, nor should it be expected. Fair use only.

One-Shot: Control

1996

The past few years had been tough for Harry...The Stone, The Chamber, The Prisoner, The Tournament...and now, tragedy once more had struck. Dumbledores office full of broken trinkets, the only person he'd ever known that truly loved him unconditionally dead, gone, forever. His body still wracked with the agony of possession, his scar on fire like never before.

'My fault...my fault...my fault…' He thought, as his feet carried him down the long hallways of Hogwarts.

The walls here were bare, so far from the normal paths taken by the students. No paintings, no windows, only the light of lit lanterns every dozen feet or so. Harry couldn't even say how many floors down he had gone, but in the back of his mind, he would have sworn it was many more than ten. The only sounds are his footsteps, plodding along, the pounding of his heart, the sharp dagger of pain in his brain with every beat of his pulse. On and on he walked until he found himself at a dead end, the last turn off dozens of feet behind him. He rests his hand on the cold stone of the wall, his eyes closed before he drops to his knees. He turns, placing his back against the wall, hugging his knees as exhaustion washed over him.

As the agony in his scar reached a fever pitch, something deep within Harry Potter awoke...

Several hours passed before Harry Potter's eyes opened, but when they did he felt many times better than he had when he passed out. The mixture of pain, sleep loss, and magical expenditure had clearly been more than he could handle. Shaking his head, he got to his feet, dusting his hands off on his pants. A wave of sadness pass through him, the loss of Sirius weighing heavily on him, nearly sending him back to his knees. He pushed through it, forcing himself to take another step.

'Sirius wouldn't want me to be like this.' Harry thought, as he continued on his way out. 'He'd want me to move forward.'

As he made his way towards the stairs that brought him down, he saw a flash of light out of the corner of his eye, a small glance that saved his life. As he ducked down, a crack echoed through the hallway as the stone behind him shatters, the powerful spell aimed to kill him. He throws himself to the side, another spell slamming into the wall behind him. He rolls to his feet, his wand in his hand just as quick, as a bright white light slams into the shield that popped into existence with nary a thought.

Further down the side hallway, Draco Malfoy stands stock still, his wand aimed at Harry. The look of shock and confusion passes quickly, and with a flick of his wand, he continues his attack.

"This is for my father, Potter!" He yells, before with a twirl and flicks a slash of bright yellow slams into Harry's shield.

'How did I cast this shield?' Harry wonders momentarily, before shoving the thought aside.

As the next spell hits his shield, he spins right, casting two spells with blinding speed, faster than he had ever before. The first is dodged, just barely, Draco nearly dropping his wand in the process. The second spell aimed slightly left, slams into his midsection like a lorry, picking him up and throwing him down the hallway where he lands in a heap. The breath knocked out of him, he barely manages to catch his breath before Harry is standing over him, his foot pressed tightly on Draco's wand.

"For your father, Malfoy?" Harry asks, the calmness of the question belying the rage boiling beneath.

Draco gives Harry a scathing look but says nothing, then looks away.

Had he been looking, he would have seen the look on Harry's face change from calm, to rage, a rictus of pain passing over his face, before a spell slaps into Draco's side, leaving a long, quarter-inch wide cut that quickly begins spilling blood.

"Answer me!" Harry roars, as Draco cries out in pain.

"Fuck you, Potter!" Draco yells back, grabbing his side, trying to get to his feet.

Harry slashes his wand, an invisible force picking Draco up, before slamming him to the ground, pinning him to the floor. Harry presses down on the wand beneath his feet, the wood creaking. Dracos eyes widen, the situation he finds himself in growing direr by the second.

"He was arrested because of you!" Draco squeaks out.

The pressure stops increasing but still holds him in place, as Harry seems to consider what Draco had said. Almost casually, scaring Draco more than anything prior, Harry twitches his wand, silently casting the spell that tells time.

"It's only been two hours, Draco. How do you know?" Harry asks in a quiet conversational tone.

Draco considers not answering, but the look in Harry's eyes tells him to reconsider.

"My mother said he never returned…" Draco finally says.

Harry closes his eyes, the realization that Draco knew of tonight's plans filling his mind with horror. The boy in front of him knew that Harry would be led to his death just hours before. Harry leans against the wall, the realization sending waves of anger through him.

"Sirius died tonight…" Harry whispered. "He died trying to save me when I went there to try and save him."

"Good."

Harry's eyes snapped open, locking onto Draco. "W-what did you just say?"

Draco sneers, but says nothing, as his heart begins pounding in his ears. Harry couldn't explain it, but somewhere, in the back of his mind, a roaring sound blanks out all other noise. The hallway seems to almost darken, the flames in the lanterns seeming to shrink. A feeling of emptiness fills him, his anger, his pain, fading away. Harry looks at the ceiling, blinking slowly, as calmness fills his being.

"You know what Draco...I can almost forgive sending me to my death tonight. You're a kid, playing in games much larger than you'll ever know." Harry said as the pressure holding Draco to the floor begins to increase. "But I'm done...I'm done being the last to know. I'm done being led around like a dog on a leash."

As Harry turns his face back downward, locking eyes with Draco, he has to admit that the look of terror on Draco's face fills him with a sort of pleasure.

"I'm taking control of my life. I'm done." Harry says, his blood-red eyes locked on Draco's blue.

"Imperio."

A/N: Sorry! I haven't had much time to write this week(I was on vacation last week, so of course work is a clusterfuck on my return.) So I decided to use what little time I had to push this little one shot out of my head.

Until next time, as always, this is Klldarkness!