(A/N: I'm glad you liked the previous chapter, even if many of you have commented that Hermione has over-reacted! Anyway, I'm sure that you'll like the next one! Enjoy!)
Chapter 26. AQUA, AERE, IGNIS, ET TERRAM
...
I'm recalling you
Beautiful as you are
Maybe even more
I'm recalling you
Sweeter as never before,
As you've never been
An angel fallen down from heaven
This you are in all my dreams
I want you so much, I want you so much...
...
"I'm recalling you" by Lucio Battisti
Harry thought he was really in trouble this time. Hermione was furious and she didn't talk to him the entire afternoon or even during dinner, making him feel extremely guilty.
That evening, Harry found a bad surprise waiting for him in the common room. He had just entered through the Fat Lady's portrait when he saw a large group of students crowded in front of the message board.
Harry and Ron got closer and as soon as they were able to read it, they widened their eyes in horror.
"No more Quidditch?" Ron shouted, extremely upset.
"They must be joking!" Harry couldn't believe his eyes.
Professor McGonagall had just posted a list of several restrictions to guarantee her students' maximum safety. As Ron had already anticipated, no longer allowed were going out into the gardens after sunset, trespassing beyond Hogwarts borders, or visiting Hogsmeade during weekends. There was also no more Quidditch practices or games.
"It's a real nightmare!" Ron commented, collapsing on the large armchair in front of the fireplace.
"What's the sense in forbidding Quidditch? Practices and matches always take place during day time! Without Quidditch, there's no reason to stay at school. It'd be much better to go back home!" Ron couldn't overcome his disappointment.
"This is a day I wish I could forget! I don't believe that anything worse could happen to me tonight!" said Harry hopelessly, sitting at Ron's side.
At that moment, Neville came up.
"Hey, guys! I'm sorry, but I've got a message for you from McGonagall."
Harry and Ron stared at him worriedly.
"Oh, no! I can't stand more bad news!"
"Since Quidditch practices and matches have been canceled, and since from now on you're going to have much more free time, McGonagall said that you can attend extra Transfiguration lessons, regularly, twice a week."
"B-but why? J-just the both of us?" Ron asked, deeply astonished.
"Well, she's asked me to do it as well. It's for the official apparation examination, you know? If I don't manage to get at least an Acceptable, this time my granny won't let me enter her house any more! I'm really sorry, mates."
When Neville left, Harry and Ron remained seated, staring at the fire in deep shock.
***O***
The week passed by very slowly for Harry; the school was almost deserted now, since most of the students had gone back home, especially the first and second years. Nevertheless, it seemed that all the teachers had become sterner than usual.
Even little Professor Flitwick had succeeded in becoming unbearable; he kept assigning pages and pages from the text book and difficult essays about past, present, and future subjects.
"Does he think that we're all some kind of Seers or something?" Ron commented on a Tuesday afternoon, when Professor Flitwick surprised them all with an unexpected exercise in class, saying that it shouldn't be so unexpected after all.
The previous Monday, Professor McGonagall had started with human disapparating, asking her students to successfully disapparate themselves on the following Wednesday class. Unfortunately, most of them, including Harry and Ron, were more or less able to disapparate only their fingers.
Ron's commented, "It's impossible to manage disapparating by the second lesson! No one would be ever able to do it!"
But Harry received the final blow from Snape, during the last two hours of Potions on Friday afternoon. With the excuse of refilling his ingredients cupboard, the teacher ordered to him and Seamus to select, wash, divide, and then cut up a mountain of lizard's eyes, bat's wings, and coleopteran's entrails, without using magic.
During the lesson, Harry had furtively gazed at Hermione and each time she turned to him, he blushed, red as a lobster. The situation was deeply humiliating and Harry succeeded in hating Snape even more than usual.
On top of it all, on Tuesday and Thursday night, Harry, Ron, and Neville had to show up to Professor McGonagall's office for their extra disapparating lessons and on Friday evening was Harry's usual Occlumency meeting with Snape.
Finally, Saturday morning came and Harry realized that he didn't have any desire to get up.
He lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling for a long time with the curtains closed around him, waiting for his roommates to go down for breakfast.
"Harry? Are you awake? I'm going downstairs to meet Luna. I'll see you later, right?" Ron shouted at him, before closing the door behind him.
All alone, Harry was already starting to relax when he heard a little voice at a distance.
"Harry? Harry?"
He sprung up and looked around him, trying to figure out who was calling out his name.
"Harry, are you there?"
As soon as he realized that the voice was coming from his trunk, Harry rushed to open it and struggled furiously among his clothes until he found what he was looking for.
"Mark!"
Harry held the two-way mirror in his hands, which was reflecting Mark Evans' smiling face.
"Hi Harry! I hope I didn't wake you up!"
"Not at all! Don't worry. H-how are you?" Harry thought it was absurd talking to someone reflected in a mirror, but he also knew that in the magical world, things like this were normal.
"I'm fine. I just wanted to ask you how your training is going."
"Training?" Harry stared at Mark, astonished.
"To learn how to use your powers!"
A sudden realization hit him: with all the things that had happened during the last week, he had completely forgotten about his secret trainings.
"Yes, I-I'm on track!" he lied so as to not worry him.
"I wanted to suggest to you a good book, which can teach you how to contact Sirius. The book's title is The Eternal Quest, written by Sir Conan Oroptimus."
"Well, thank you!"
"I must go now, but please, keep me informed about your progress."
"All right! See you soon Mark."
Suddenly, Mark Evans' image disappeared in a vortex of fog.
I must absolutely start the training again! Harry thought, while setting the mirror in his trunk.
I don't think Hermione would help me this time. I'll ask Ron! he said to himself, while putting on a pair of extra large jeans and a gray woolen sweater.
Harry got closer to the dormitory mirror and quickly passed a hand through his black hair, managing to ruffle it even more. He then exited into the hall and rushed to the deserted common room.
When he reached the Great Hall for breakfast, he found Ron and Luna chatting happily at the Gryffindor table.
"Good morning Luna, Ron!" Harry greeted them and took a seat close by.
Instinctively, he scanned the table looking for Hermione, but he didn't find her. Since the day of their quarrel, Harry hadn't yet found the courage to talk to her. He was feeling deeply guilty and in addition, he wanted to let his best friend calm down before trying again.
"If you're looking for Hermione, well, she just left a few minutes ago!" Luna's comment made him jump in his place.
Harry turned to Ron abruptly and frowned at him, fearing that his friend had told Luna about his love troubles, but Ron replied by shrugging his shoulders.
"Don't worry, Ron didn't tell me anything. Lavender did! Last Monday she found Hermione in tears in her dormitory," Luna explained simply.
Harry didn't know what to say. Other people talking about his private life was the thing he hated the most. He sighed deeply and poured some tea into his cup.
"What are you going to do this weekend?" Ron asked curiously and suddenly Harry recalled what Mark had just told him.
"Ron, listen! Would you like to help me?"
"Sure! Tell me what it's about."
"I need to train myself for... you know what." Harry didn't want Luna listening to them, but she had just got closer, not missing a word.
"Your new powers? Of course, I can help you!" Ron said happily.
"We wanted to spend the whole day together!" Luna protested and Ron hurriedly found a good solution to not disappoint her.
"Well, why don't you come with us?"
"No way!" Harry didn't like the idea. If Luna knew his secret, she would fill the whole school with the news.
"Why not? I'll be as dumb as a fish, nobody will ever know about it, I swear!"
Harry didn't know what to do.
"If you want my help, then Luna'll have to come with us!" exclaimed Ron with a firm voice and Harry had no other choice.
"All right then, we'll go after breakfast." Harry ended resigned, before starting to sip his tea.
***O***
Ron was sitting leg crossed on the soft carpet of the Room of Requirement, skimming through the pages of an ancient book entitled How to gain control over the universal elements: theory and practice.
While he was trying hard to understand as much as possible, Harry was walking along the library to find the text Mark had suggested to him and Luna was curiously looking at the huge series of strange mechanical devices which were sitting on the shelves around the room.
Finally, Harry found the book he was looking for, The Eternal Quest by Sir Conan Oroptimus. He was really surprised when he saw that it was smaller that all the other books in the library.
I'm going to read it later, he thought, slipping the text in his jeans' pocket.
"Why don't we start with something practical? This stuff is incredible!" said Ron excitedly and Harry came immediately to his side.
"I'll read you what it says here, 'Among the numerous powers of a Seer, one of the most interesting is the ability to control the universal elements, Fire, Water, Earth, and Air. As soon as he is in deep concentration, a Seer is able to evoke those elements at will and order them to increase or decrease...' COOL! I'm almost envying you!" As soon as Ron ended the sentence, Harry frowned at him.
"I was just joking! Shall we try it? Let's see... IGNIS is the word to evoke the Fire, TERRAM is used for earthquakes, I think! I'd start with Air, since it looks easier."
"All right, then. Let's start with that."
Harry stood right in the center of the room, while Ron was still reading carefully through the book.
"You should try to get deeply concentrated."
Harry followed Ron's suggestion and closed his eyes.
CRASHHHHHH!
Suddenly, they heard a terrible noise and both turned to face Luna.
"Oops! I'm so sorry! I won't do that again, I promise!"
Luna had just pushed down a curious crystal still and its slimy greenish contents had spread all over the floor.
"Er... honey? Why don't you come here and sit close to me?" Ron asked her kindly, trying not to seem too harsh; Harry rolled his eyes.
Luna reached her boyfriend and sat crossed legged on the floor.
"Well, let's start again. Are you deeply concentrated? All right... now try to visualize the air which surrounds us in this room."
Harry closed his eyes again and followed Ron's words.
"Now, visualize the air which surrounds the whole castle, the gardens, Hogsmeade's village, the whole country, the world and the universe. You should try to feel one with this element. Are you there?"
Harry nodded with a light sign of his head, forcing himself to remain concentrated.
"Now you should stretch out your arms and say the magical words Aere Emanatum."
Harry obeyed; he extended his arms in front of him and pronounced the magical words aloud and with deep determination.
"AERE EMANATUM!"
After a few seconds he opened his eyes and was disappointed to see that nothing had happened.
"Well, I wouldn't worry if I were you, Harry. You know, the first time isn't always so easy to..."
"Wait! Look at that!" Luna grabbed Ron's head and forced him to turn toward a far corner of the room.
"I-I can't believe it!" exclaimed Harry surprised.
A tiny vortex of air, as big as the palm of a hand, was whirling in that corner.
"Very good Harry, very good!" Ron couldn't disguise his excitement. "Now, try to concentrate again and order the vortex to increase... you should say Augeo!"
Harry closed his eyes again and pointed his arms toward the tiny tornado.
"AUGEO!"
The vortex quickly grew bigger. At first, it was as tall as a table, then a cupboard. Finally it reached the ceiling
and was strong enough to drag along anything in its path, filling the room with a heavy wind. The vortex was
dangerously heading toward the three of them.
Harry stepped backwards, while Ron and Luna stood up and flattened themselves against the wall, covering their faces with their hands.
Every object in the room was thrown violently everywhere.
Panic rose in Harry's heart, since he thought it impossible to control the vortex anymore. Then suddenly, he became weaker and weaker; his head started to throb painfully and he sensed a sharp pain inside his chest. Harry raised a hand to his heart and, unable to resist, he fell on his knees.
In that moment, the vortex lost its power and started to decrease, until it became smaller again, just like the palm of a hand. Finally it disappeared with a little POP!
"Is everything all right?" asked Ron extremely worried, coming closer to his best friend.
Harry was panting heavily and didn't even have enough strength to reply, so he nodded a yes with his head. Ron grabbed Harry's arm and helped him stand up.
"Mark had told me that... using these powers could leave me weak..." said Harry exhausted, wiping the sweat off his forehead with his sweater sleeve.
"Stop it here, then!" Ron spoke with a firm tone and closed the book which he was still holding tightly in his hands.
"NO! I want to go on! The only way to control these powers is to practice. Please Ron, I need your help again!"
Ron nodded uncertainly and opened the book unwillingly.
"Shall we try with Water?" he asked doubtfully and Harry nodded, reaching the center of the room.
"This time we need something liquid to start with..." said Ron, looking around him.
"Maybe that greenish substance could be useful!" asked Luna, quietly.
"Well, since we haven't got anything else, I think it'll be fine. Harry, you should deeply concentrate on that substance and say the magical words Aqua Emanatum!"
Harry obeyed; he closed his eyes again and stretched his arms out toward the point where Luna had broken the still.
"AQUA EMANATUM!"
This time, Harry saw immediately a small spiral springing out from the liquid, even though it was as small as a wine
goblet.
"AUGEO!"
At Harry's order, the whirl increased more and more, until it became as tall as a table. It was already starting to
engulf everything along its path when Harry felt his strength being completely dragged out of him and the sharp pain in
his chest became unbearable.
His head was throbbing, making him dizzy as he felt the need to throw up. When the vortex decreased abruptly, Harry fainted on the floor, unconscious.
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