Chapter 17: Help

Rose and I talked things out. I told her about Lockhart using her to get one over on me and she apologized for not seeing it sooner. I told her she should never apologize for having a good heart and that the only one who needed to do so was Lockhart. I found out later that Sirius was actually the one who convinced her to talk to me and get my side. I was grateful, but curious as to why he got involved. When I asked him, he said 'because, apparently, I'm a masochist'... Dammit.

Leo was unable to sleep that night, instead staring up unblinkingly at the ceiling above his bed. He hadn't known he'd be able to harm someone using Floo powder, and he wasn't sure to what extent he had injured Umbridge. I hope she's hurt so badly she'll have to leave school. He snarled to himself. I hope I've scarred her for life, just like she's scarred me and Harry. I hope it eventually kills her.

Normally, by that point, he'd reevaluate his thoughts and try to reel them back a pace, knowing he'd feel bad if he actually killed someone. This time was different. He wanted her dead, and he didn't care if it was by his hand at this point. She had crossed a line going after Sirius and pulling pranks just wouldn't be enough for him anymore. He wanted her to suffer, and he wanted it to be done by his hand.

He jolted into an upright position as he felt his hands grow warm. He stared down at them, noticing a faint reddish-orange glow coming from them. He closed and opened them several times, feeling a thrum of power reverberate through his entire being. He hadn't felt anything like it before, and stared down in awe at his hands, the last of his rage draining away. The glow from his hands faded and the last of his energy drained out of him, prompting him to flop back on his pillow, exhausted.

What was that? He wondered tiredly, his eyes beginning to droop. Before he could think anymore, his eyes fully closed and he sunk into a dreamless sleep. He was abruptly awoken what felt like minutes later but, in reality, was much longer than that if the sunlight streaming into his dorm room was anything to judge by. Harry stood next to his bed, fully clothed and telling him that he'd miss breakfast if he didn't get up soon.

Leo grumbled in response as he slowly rose to a sitting position and rubbed his eyes, wondering why he felt so tired and sluggish. Dunno why I'm so tired, all we did was talk to Uncle Siri last night until Umbridge barged in and we had to scarper. He frowned, pausing in the midst of taking off his shirt to ponder why that statement felt so strange. He felt as though he was forgetting something, but couldn't quite put his finger on what it was.

Deciding it probably wasn't important, he quickly dressed and met his friends down in the common room before they headed down the long staircases and into the entrance hall. They had barely set foot in the Great Hall when McGonagall came bustling toward them, her face quite pale and reminding Leo of when she had led him and Harry to the First Task last year. He felt a deep sense of foreboding.

"Black," she said in an eerily calm voice. "I'm to escort you to the Headmaster's office immediately."

Leo frowned, looking at his friends and hoping to exchange looks of confusion. Instead, they merely looked nervous and worried on his behalf. He couldn't fathom why that was and so he shrugged and trudged along behind McGonagall as she led the way to the third floor and they stood in front of the stone gargoyle. She spoke the password and the gargoyle stepped to the side, allowing them to ride the slowly ascending staircase up to the Headmaster's office. McGonagall knocked on the door and a voice told her to enter.

McGonagall opened the door and the two strode in, Leo stopping to stare at everyone in surprise. Not only was Dumbledore – who he was expecting to see – there, but his father and Fudge were there as well, all with different expressions. Fudge's face was red, whether from anger or something else, Leo couldn't tell. Dumbledore appeared troubled, the usual twinkle missing from his eyes as he surveyed Leo over steepled fingers. Castor was lounging on a chair, his feet propped on Dumbledore's desk and seeming quite bored with the whole proceeding.

Fudge was the first to stride forward and speak.

"And here is the criminal at last!" he stated. "Finally decided to show up, have you?"

"Er, I wasn't aware that we had an appointment?" Leo blinked at him before frowning as the rest of what the Minister said caught up with him. "Wait, criminal? I know you lot like to make up false stories about me and the rest of my family, but this is getting a bit ridiculous."

"Is this a joke to you, Black?" Fudge snapped, his face turning a darker shade of red that would've made Vernon proud.

"Depends, what're we talking about?" the blonde inquired, the corners of his lips twitching in amusement.

"Professor Umbridge was admitted to St. Mungo's last night with serious burns on her arm," Dumbledore informed him. "It appears to have been a powerful Dark curse that, had the limb not been amputated, would most assuredly have killed her."

So, would you say she's been... disarmed? Leo bit his lip to keep from saying this out loud. Cas snorted but managed to disguise it as a cough before looking at Leo with a blank expression. The blonde frowned again, wondering what this had to do with him. He voiced those very thoughts aloud.

"What's it got to do with me?" Leo asked, tilting his head to the side slightly in confusion.

"You're the one that did it!" Fudge shouted.

"I did?" Leo blinked at him. "When did that happen?"

"Last night when she was engaging in an illegal activity," Cas replied in a bored tone. "Allegedly, anyway. Remind me again, Minister, what's the punishment for illegal Floo-tapping?"

"It wasn't illegal, it was approved by me -" Fudge turned on the man angrily.

"At two o'clock this morning," Cas interrupted him. "I believe the injuries your Undersecretary received occurred at half-past one this morning. Since the documents were not approved until half an hour after this, what she was doing was, in fact, illegal." He paused, his eyes twinkling with suppressed mischief. "I'm sure hearing that a Ministry official was illegally spying will cause quite the scandal. One you can hardly afford, given how your poll numbers are tanking since Umbridge's appointment."

Fudge was silent, his hands balled into fists and his knuckles turning white. Leo had never seen the man so angry and resolved to imprint this moment in his memory for the rest of eternity. Still dunno what's going on though. I didn't do anything to Dumbitch. He frowned, folding his arms over his chest. At least, nothing harmful.

"Just what are you saying, Black?" Fudge growled at Cas.

"Merely stating that what Umbridge was doing was illegal," he paused once more, tilting his head to the side. "Unless, of course, it never happened."

"... Go on," Fudge said with some reluctance.

"The way I see it, if Umbridge wasn't committing illegal activities, Leo couldn't have – allegedly – attacked her," Castor replied, raising an eyebrow at Fudge. "So, I put it to you: was Dolores Umbridge spying on a Floo call?"

"... No," Fudge growled out through gritted teeth. "She was not. She must have been mistaken. I'll discuss the matter with her before she returns to Hogwarts tomorrow."

Leo scowled, his budding hope that she'd stay away now officially dashed. Fudge didn't say another word as he strode over to Dumbledore's fireplace, threw some powder into the fire, and Flooed back to the Ministry. Leo stared at the spot where the man had vanished before slowly turning to look at everyone else.

"So, er, are we done here?" Leo inquired. "Because I still need breakfast before I head off to Charms."

"Not quite, Mr. Black," Dumbledore said, sitting up straighter in his chair. "There is still the matter of what you did to Professor Umbridge -"

"I didn't do anything, honest!" Leo shouted before looking at his father and staring at him imploringly. "You'd know if I was lying. You'd be able to see it."

Castor was silent, his face impassive as he stared at his son. Leo felt a small tickle somewhere in the back of his mind and frowned, wondering if his dad was digging around trying to find something. The man's brow furrowed before his eyebrows went up slightly. He gave Leo a confused look before turning to Dumbledore.

"There's no recollection of the incident. It's possible the wards around the house could have attacked Umbridge," the man informed him in a mild tone. "She might've mistaken it for a hand, and it's only logical that she'd point the blame at Leo. He has given her quite a bit of grief this year and has a rather staggering reputation as a pyro."

"You're saying Leo had nothing to do with this whatsoever?" McGonagall questioned, seeming relieved as she placed a hand on the teen's shoulder.

"Yes," Cas inclined his head before eyeing Leo out of the corner of his eye. "Despite this, I'd like it if he could have the day off. It'll give us time to figure out what really happened last night."

"You're staying at the school, Castor?" Dumbledore raised an eyebrow.

"Just for the day. I'll be out of your unnecessarily long hair by tonight," Cas informed him. "So, will you grant Leo the day off?"

Dumbledore looked thoughtful before he nodded slowly. Cas lowered his feet off the desk before standing up and walking over to Leo. He placed a hand on the teen's shoulder, leading him out of the office and down the stairs. They walked through the third floor corridor in silence before making their way down the stairs to the entrance hall. Leo briefly wondered where everyone was before recalling that class had probably started by now.

Cas led him through the oak double doors out into the courtyard. They walked quickly across the bridge before making their way out to the grounds. They headed toward the Forbidden Forest, pausing only briefly to ensure no one was around before sliding into the shadows of the trees. Cas fell forward, landing on Fen's paws and giving a low bark. Leo shifted, turning into Aslan and shaking out his mane. Fen gave a twitch of his ears before leading the way through the forest, staying off the various paths that had been trampled by centaurs. It wasn't long before the trees thinned and they arrived at the inlet, where Cas turned back into himself and sat down on the shore. Leo did the same, sitting across from the man and eyeing him curiously.

"What do you remember about last night?" Cas asked, getting straight to the point as per usual.

Leo frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. His father had said he had had nothing to do with what happened to Umbridge last night. Yet, here he was, questioning him as though he had. Something's going on, but what? He pondered, feeling distinctly as though he was missing something. He sighed, the best way to figure out what it was was to humour the man. He furrowed his brow, thinking hard.

"I finished my essay for Binns when Uncle Sirius appeared in the fire," he began slowly, tapping his elbow with his finger. "We talked to him for a bit when he suddenly disappeared and Umbridge's hand appeared in the fire. Then..." His brow furrowed, this next part was a bit foggy to him before his expression cleared as he recalled what happened next. "Her hand vanished, I told Harry I'd join their club, and then we all went up to bed... Why was she after him anyway?"

"Doesn't really matter right now," Cas waved his hand. "Do you remember what made Umbridge's hand disappear?"

"No. You said the wards -"

"Oh, that was a lie," Cas shrugged nonchalantly. "The wards had nothing to do with it. Sirius saw Umbridge's hand from his end and another hand grabbed it. It was your hand, he recognized the scars on the back of your arm from the hippogriff -"

"But, I don't remember any of it!" Leo exclaimed. "I think I'd remember burning Umbridge's hand off – go right in the Patronus bank that would."

"Yeah, that's what bothers me," Cas frowned. "We know you did it – we know why, how, and where you did it. The only question is: why don't you remember it? Those type of burns – that type of curse – could only have been done by Fiendfyre but... it's weird. It's like she was burned from the inside out..."

Cas trailed off, looking over the lake thoughtfully. Leo opened his mouth to ask what he was thinking about then closed it abruptly, figuring the man would just tell him when he was ready. Cas twitched his fingers, looking down at his hand with a small frown before looking up and staring over the lake once more. His brow furrowed as he turned back to Leo, seeming to have reached some unpleasant conclusion.

"When you get angry, do you lose control over your abilities?" he asked, his tone saying that he already knew the answer.

"Yeah, why?"

"Has it gotten worse as you've gotten stronger? Harder to control?" Cas pressed.

Leo frowned, recalling that a few weeks ago at this very spot where he had caused the temperature to change just because he had been irritated. It used to take a lot more than that to lose control, and I've never been able to affect the temperature. He nodded to his dad after a moment, remembering he hadn't answered the question. Cas cursed under his breath, running a hand over his face tiredly before looking at his son.

"I had hoped you'd already progressed past this stage," he sighed. "After everything that I heard at Hogwarts, I thought you had gone through it and would be all right with Fiendfyre. I'd've never suggested it if I knew you hadn't been through the Clash -"

"Are you going to keep rambling or are you planning on explaining what the bloody hell you're talking about some time this century?" Leo cut him off crossly.

Cas raised his eyebrows before choosing to let the attitude go.

"There's something all Elementalists go through at different points in their life called 'the Clash'," Cas explained. "As you grow stronger, so too do your powers. Eventually, there comes a time when your powers want to exceed what your body is capable of. When this happens, you can sort of... I guess blackout would be the most appropriate term? Your abilities act on your desires rather than letting you consciously control it like you normally can -"

"So, because I wanted Umbridge to get hurt... I hurt her without realizing it?" Leo frowned in confusion.

"Yes, I suppose that's the best way to simplify it," Cas nodded. "Now that you're aware of it, I don't think you'll blackout as much if at all. You'll still have trouble controlling your abilities but -"

"For how long?"

"All depends on the person," Cas shrugged. "I managed to get mine under control before Christmas in my fifth year with Sirius's help... Anyway, 'the Clash' is what we refer to as the time frame in which an Elementalist and their ability are at war. There's a sort of battle of wills that occurs. If you win, you gain mastery over your ability and complete control over what you can do. Conjuring Fiendfyre will be as easy as slipping into your Animagus form."

"And if I don't win?" Leo questioned, not sure he'd like the answer.

"Your ability consumes you and – for you anyway – you die in a fiery explosion causing immense amounts of damage and death to anything and everything around you," Cas replied in the same tone one would use to talk about the weather.

Leo stared at him.

"You're awful at delivering bad news. Anyone ever tell you that?"

"Siri, Remy, James, your mum, Lily," Cas began to count off before stopping as he noticed his son's glower. "Anyway, I wouldn't worry too much about it, you'll do fine. I'll send Siri up to keep an eye on you if it'll make you feel any better?"

"Yeah, thanks," Leo grumbled, tucking his knees into his chest. "Any advice on how not to blow up?"

"Just... learn to keep your cool I guess?" Cas shrugged again. "Don't use your abilities out of anger and keep dark thoughts to a minimum."

"Easier said than done, 'specially considering that Umbridge'll be back tomorrow."

"I might be able to help with that..."