Chapter 6
"Harry," Dumbledore spoke gently, "would you mind if I have a look at your hands?"
The boy shrunk further down in his seat. Newt looked between the two of them with a confused frown.
Dumbledore kept his eyes on his young student, his eyes had stopped twinkling as he kept watching the very insecure boy before him.
"Harry, will you please look at me." The boy shook his head.
"Professor, what -" Newt started to speak but Dumbledore stopped him.
"Would you prefer if we are out of the public view, my boy?"
A hesitant nod was given in reply.
Dumbledore stood up from the table, "Then I believe it is time we see the accommodation you've received in this establishment, Mr Scamander, if you will kindly join us." He strode away from the table leaving both his students quite dumbstruck. Harry, who had not had the chance to see the headmaster out of the school, and Newt who was kind of used to the eccentricities of the old man, both were still quite confused with what just happened. Newt Scamander invited his old headmaster over to uncover the mystery that was Harry Potter, but when he did arrive, he had taken over the conversation, as well as the situation with ease and now, was directing them to follow his tunes. However, they both got to their feet anyways.
"Good morning, Tom." Dumbledore greeted the barman.
"Professor Dumbledore! Good morning, sir, very good morning. Your usual?" Tom greeted the man with his toothless smile.
"I am afraid not, Tom. Young Mister Potter here has stumbled upon a rare tome on dragons this morning by chance, and both Master Scamander and I want to take a peek at that. Some other times, perhaps?"
"Of course, sir. Will you be in Mister Potter's room then?"
"Yes, Tom, if it is no trouble?"
"None at all, sir. Please, if you need anything, just call out for me."
Dumbledore gave the man a courteous nod, "Of course, Tom. Now, if you will excuse us. Harry? After you, please." He indicated the staircase for Harry to take the lead towards his room. Seeing no other chance, Harry reluctantly started to climb the stairs.
Once in his room, the three humans were greeted by a disgruntled hoot of an annoyed white owl. She was glaring at them for making a raucous when she was trying to sleep.
"Sorry to wake you up, girl, but this is important." Harry tried to placate his irate familiar. Also, he was trying to brace himself for what was to come.
He didn't know for how long he kept stroking Hedwig's feathers and mentally preparing himself, he once more became aware of the presence of two other persons by the headmaster's voice.
"Harry?"
"I-I am sorry, Professor. But please…please believe me that I didn't do it on purpose. I-I didn't even know how all of this happened."
"What happened exactly, Mr Potter?" Newt Scamander asked.
"I have c-changed. I don't know how…but one moment I was sleeping, and…and then I changed to…" He trailed off.
"Changed to what, Harry?"
With a shuddering breath, Harry decided to tell the Headmaster everything. Hey, he was said to be the most powerful and intelligent wizard. Maybe he would have an idea about what is wrong with him.
"I changed into a basilisk, Professor."
The deafening silence made Harry turn around to face the grown-ups. He peered at them from under his hood. Both the wizards had frowns on their faces as they contemplated what he just told them.
"Dear boy," Dumbledore started with a sigh, "it is just not possible for someone to turn into a basilisk. A wizard accidentally turning into a snake, while not out of the ranges of possibilities, given to the most unusual of circumstances, but never a basilisk. For the sole reason that a basilisk needed a special ritual to be created, a dark one."
"I didn't turn into a basilisk then, just a normal snake?" Relief was evident in his voice.
"When did you turn into a snake, Harry?"
Harry fidgeted a little before answering, "A few days before I left the Dursleys. I-I was having a nightmare…about the Chamber, the basilisk and everything…and then…when I woke up, I was a snake…I didn't have my legs and arms…bloody hell, I didn't even have my eyelids…"
Newt Scamander turned to look at his old Professor, "An accidental snake animagus?"
Dumbledore didn't take off his eyes from the boy. With a small frown, he asked, "How did you change back?"
"Umm…I read some books on animagus transformation after our first class with Professor McGonagall…"
"Let me guess," Newt said with a chuckle, "she still does her cat-to-woman trick for the firsties in the first-ever Transfiguration class?"
"Uh, yes. She tells us that she enjoys the startled looks on the young faces when they see her change." Dumbledore said with a smirk, "Now, you were saying, Harry?"
"Right…umm…I read in that book that folks that can turn into animals, need to concentrate hard. And…umm…Hermione always harps on about me and Ron about not concentrating enough. So…um…when she was petrified last year, I kinda asked Madame Pomfrey for help in concentration, so that I can take Hermione's notes for her in…well, at her level…and having concentration would help…and…and then she taught me some meditation tricks…to concentrate, you see. And the book said meditating help with the transformation. So I tried that to turn back."
Both the men were looking wide-eyed towards the boy. He started to fidget again under their unblinking stare.
"Let's see if I understood it correctly." Newt started, "You woke up from your nightmare and you found out that you have accidentally turned into a snake. Then you tried your meditation tricks to concentrate enough so that you transformed back. Is that right?"
"Ah…kinda?" Harry mumbled.
"Bloody hell. Does he have rudimentary Occlumency skills too? And at his age?" Newt ran a hand through his hair. He turned to the Headmaster, "I believe he is muggle-raised?" At Dumbledore's nod of assent, he asked with a hint of frustration, "How is it possible, Professor?"
"Sorry…but I have what?"
Dumbledore was looking at Harry with his piercing blue eyes, it felt to him as if he could look under his hood to his eyes and directly into his soul.
"Harry Potter has shown marvellous fits of magic that most couldn't even dream of accomplishing at his age. The wand that has chosen him is certainly proving that point. Would you mind telling Newt about your wand, Harry? Don't worry, I can vouch for his trustworthiness."
Harry nodded slowly, "Uh…sure, but why do you ask?"
"A witch or wizard's wand is a very intimate subject, Harry. Asking one, who is not from your family, about their wand is considered to be a breach of social etiquette."
"Oh…sorry, I didn't know that. And when I asked Ron and Hermione about their wands, they didn't tell me anything about the rule."
Dumbledore gave him an indulgent smile, "It is not a rule, per se, dear boy, but a social norm. You wouldn't ask your friends about their parents' earnings, would you? But I ask you to share this information with Master Scamander here to help him understand you a little better. If you don't want to, then it is of course alright, and I ask for your forgiveness."
Harry nodded his head in understanding, it surely would have been awkward to talk with Ron about how much his parents earned, seeing the state of his clothes and his broken wand. Trying to change the subject, he hurriedly blurted the reply to the Professor's earlier request –
"Um…my wand is made of Holy with a phoenix tail feather core…Professor Dumbledore's phoenix, Fawkes." He reached into his back pocket to bring out the wand to show them. He didn't notice it, but Dumbledore's eyes were fixed on his hand, instead of his wand.
Newt let out a low whistle, "A phoenix feather core? That is quite a powerful wand, Mr Potter. As far as I know, phoenix feather wands chose their wielder based on the power they can muster. You are bound for some great things in your life."
Harry nodded dumbly, "Er…right, Mr Olivander said something like that too."
Newt produced his wand from his wrist holster, it was a light coloured wand, "Mine is Ash, with a mother of pearl sheen and a core of tail hair from a healthy male unicorn. A wand fit for healers or adventurers – according to Mr Olivander. Well, seeing my profession, I reckon he was right." He ended with a chuckle.
Harry turned to Dumbledore, "Does your wand have a phoenix feather too, Professor?" He blushed right away, "Er…sorry, forgot about the etiquette…"
Newt snorted at that but Dumbledore chuckled, taking out his wand from within the sleeve of his robe, it was a long wand with some bumps that adorned it at regular intervals, "It is quite alright, my boy. I am the one who raised the subject of wand after all. My old wand did have a phoenix feather, but my new one is an even rarer combination."
"Oh? What is it made of then?"
Dumbledore put away his wand, "That is a long story and I want to do it justice by telling it another time. Now, I believe you said you have mastered some meditating techniques?"
"Um…yeah."
"And if I may make an assumption, you are doing some of that right now, aren't you?"
Harry rubbed his palms over his jumper trying to wipe the sweat off, "Yeah…I sort of started doing it after that time, when I was talking with the…er…my relatives and I found that my tongue was forked and I was slipping into Parseltongue. I kinda chant 'Harry the human' in my mind to stay human."
"Harry the human, you say?" Dumbledore asked amusedly, ignoring Newt's small asking frown at the word 'Parseltongue'.
"Yes, sir."
"A crude but effective shield, if I may say so." He nodded.
"Indeed, Professor." Newt agreed with him.
"Would you mind lowering your shield, Harry?"
"My what?"
"I am sorry. I meant to say your Occlumency shield."
"But I don't know this…this occlu-thingy…" Harry cried out.
"Occlumency, my dear boy, is a rare form of Mind Magic. It helps one to organize their mind, and deflect any outside attack to the mind. While its counter, Legilimency, is the way for witches or wizards to delve into another's mind."
"Hang on," Harry's eyes were wide with fear, "People can read my mind? Really?"
"The mind is not a book for one to read in their leisure, Harry. Legilimency only serves the caster to glean knowledge from one's mind, their thoughts or secrets."
"I bet Snape does this Legiliminny thing," Harry muttered furiously under his breath.
"Professor Snape, Harry," Dumbledore chided, "and it is Legilimency."
"Er…right, that one…sorry." He muttered, "But how did you know I was doing Occlumency?"
"By looking at your hand when you are showing us your wand." Dumbledore indicated at his right hand. "You are too young to sprout body hair and as far as I know, none of your ancestors had that much body hair. I do not know about your mother's side for obvious reasons, but as I have indeed met with Lily's parents, so I can make a safe assumption."
Harry looked down at his hand to find that Dumbledore was right. Once again he was sporting furs. He realized that the itching was back too, but he had been ignoring it unknowingly. He raised his head to look at the Headmaster as he continued with his speech –
"It seems to me that whenever you are agitated, you trigger your change. But by sheer force of will and erroneous application of a rare skill that you somehow garnered, you can stop the change. Very commendable. But I want to see you change so I can help you with your problem. If you would, please lower your mind shield."
"But how do I do that? I don't even know that I am doing Occlumency."
"Forgive me, I seemed to have…uh…forgotten to clearly state my instruction. You only needed to stop your chanting. Relax your mind and when you feel that you are starting to change, let it continue."
"But…"
Dumbledore raised his hand and spoke assuring Harry, "Relax, dear boy, if you get stuck, I promise that I will change you back."
Harry looked at Newt who nodded back to him. He turned back and looked at Hedwig, she too bobbed her head at him, as if encouraging him to follow the Headmaster's instruction. Sighing, he closed his eyes and tried to relax.
The two adult wizards looked on as Harry's breathing slowed, his shoulders shagged visibly as he tried to relax and his breathing eased a bit. Then, before their eyes, Harry started to shrink. Soon, he vanished within his clothes as they flopped down on the floor. At the middle of the pile of clothes was a small moving mound.
"Forgive me," Dumbledore called out, "I seemed to be saying those two words again and again today. I thought your clothes would transform like normal, but for new animagi, they always forget to enshroud their clothes with their magic when they change. Allow me to help you out of there, Harry."
He bent down and reached under the clothes pile to bring the squirming mound out of the mess. He gently put the boy down and straightened up, looking down at him with wide eyes.
From his vantage point, both Newt Scamander and Albus Dumbledore seemed to him like a pair of giants. Harry was feeling a little disoriented from the change.
Dumbledore brought out his wand again and waved it in front of him. A mirror sprang into existence right before Harry.
"I thought you said you turn into a snake, my boy…"
Harry looked at his reflection in the mirror.
"…but it seems you are an owl."
An owl covered in black feathers and with big, round green eyes was staring back at the confused boy.
A.N. - The Harry Potter AU fic - The Unknown Power, is currently 8 chapters in. The recent most chapters could be found at pat-rea-on dot com slash lamonserga.