Control

The library was more silent than ever.

The usual whispers and rustling of pages had given way to an eerie stillness, broken only by the occasional creak of ancient wood settling.

In this hushed atmosphere, Harry sat alone at a table in the transfiguration section, surrounded by stacks of books.

Fleur had taken her leave to return to her quarters as she was spent and night approached.

Harry, however, remained despite his girlfriend's protests, because he had stumbled upon a promising lead in a dusty tome about advanced human transfiguration.

The concept of partial self-transfiguration seemed like a good idea at the time, particularly the idea of transforming specific body parts to adapt to underwater conditions.

However, as he delved deeper, he realised that a partial transfiguration wouldn't do anything about Fleur's weakness in water.

Anyhow, that was two hours ago…

His eyes were starting to blur from the strain of reading for hours on end, yet Harry refused to give up.

He was tired of heading to bed without any progress on Fleur's disadvantage…

In the past weeks, they had learnt countless spells that could be used underwater and against the water dwellers, but were unable to find a way to put Fleur on an equal footing with the other champions.

Harry's emerald eyes scanned the pages intently, searching and searching for any hint, or clue that might lead to a solution.

As he turned yet another page, a faint glimmer of hope sparked in his tired eyes.

There, on the yellowed page before him, was a detailed description of a ritual — he was in the restricted section — one that granted temporary resistance to water's adverse effects on creatures of fire.

'If only we can make a spell of this,' Harry thought to himself, afraid to dabble into rituals without Salazar's opinion.

He wasn't proficient in the art, yet.

Harry made a mental note to discuss this with Fleur when he woke up and decided to call it a day.

With a weary sigh, the boy stood up and waved his hand, and as if on cue, the books around him began to float gently back to their shelves.

That was another little surprise that came from the ritual.

Harry acquired wandless magic capabilities, allowing him to perform simple spells with but a thought.

As the books settled silently into their proper places, Harry couldn't help but remember the previous week, when it first happened.

.

"Come on Fleur… I have to stop using the spell eventually, and my senses could provide us with an overwhelming advantage for the task," Harry said, his eyes fixed on his girlfriend.

Fleur gazed back, her brow furrowed with concern.

Her silvery-blonde hair was tied back in a practical ponytail and she wore a light blue training outfit that complemented her eyes.

Despite their rigorous training session, her skin remained flawless, the only evidence of her exertion being a light sheen of perspiration.

Her wand was still held loosely in her right hand, ready to fire a spell at a moment's notice.

"'Arry, I understand your point, but I'm afraid, okay?" she replied, her French accent thickening with concern, momentarily resurfacing despite her now perfect English.

She took a deep breath, her eyes steeling as she met Harry's determined gaze.

"What if somezing goes wrong and you can't control yourself again, huh? Do you know how much you scared me when it last happened?"

Harry felt a pang of guilt at her words and was momentarily stunned, unable to say anything.

Nodding slowly, he replied, "You're right. I'm sorry Fleur. However, it's been a month since that… and my control grew by leaps and bounds. I'm pretty sure I can manage now."

Fleur didn't look fully convinced but Harry knew he had her.

And just moments later, she let out a sigh of defeat, her shoulders easing a bit as she met his gaze.

"Okay, 'Arry. We can try. But if anything feels off, I'll immediately hit you with Sensoria Minora and I don't care if you have any problems with that," she said, her voice mixed with resignation, but also determination.

Harry nodded and raised his wand, pointing at himself — a familiar gesture in the weeks following the ritual.

"Finite," he murmured, his wand tracing a graceful arc in front of his face.

Instantly, a rush of sensations flooded his mind — the vibrant, swirling auras of magic became much more pronounced once more.

A glance told him that Fleur's form was surrounded by a mesmerising, silvery-red glow, pulsating with her Veela heritage.

Of course, he knew that, but the sight didn't fail to leave him awestruck.

Hogwarts' grounds themselves seemed to come alive with magical energy — streams of magic flowing through the air, moving with life and power.

In the distance, the ancient stones of the castle seemed to resonate with the world's magic, murmuring secrets that lay just beyond Harry's grasp.

The poor magical sensor took a deep breath, centring himself as he adjusted to the heightened awareness.

He focused on the magical energies he could feel before, slowly muting the new ones.

"I can control it now," he said with a slight smirk, yet his voice was taut with concentration.

Fleur penetrated him with a sceptical look, her eyes narrowing slightly as she looked him up and down.

Harry could feel her gaze probing, searching for any signs of loss of control.

After a moment, she nodded, seemingly satisfied with what she saw.

"Alright, let's continue then," Fleur said and, without warning, fired a spell towards him.

The new magical energy lightened like a beacon in Harry's unshackled senses.

He felt, before he saw, the stinging hex speeding towards him.

However, Fleur had come too close to him whilst he adjusted his senses, and he didn't have enough time to cast a spell.

He instinctively raised his hand, a shield charm materialising without a word or wand.

The spell dissipated harmlessly against the barrier, leaving both Harry and Fleur wide-eyed at this unexpected display of wandless magic.

Harry blinked, momentarily stunned by what he had just done.

He looked at his hand, then back at Fleur, who seemed equally astonished.

"Did I just...?"

.

Harry chuckled at the memory, pushing his occlumency to its limits, just to remember Fleur's exact expression.

"She was quite cute," he mumbled aloud, sporting a stupid smile.

Shaking his head, Harry scanned the area, ensuring he left no trace of his presence.

Nodding to himself, the boy-wonder flashed away…

He reappeared in Fleur's quarters and he stood still, letting his eyes slowly adjust to the dim light and his senses to acclimate to the new surroundings.

Harry had quickly, and painfully, learned that changing places instantaneously wasn't easy on his new abilities.

Even with his eyes closed, the magical energies around him shifted dramatically, causing his magical sense to go haywire.

The sudden shift was so disorienting and nauseating, that Harry had fainted once.

That's why he pushed his hard-earned control to the max and lowered his magical awareness to almost nothing.

With a quiet sigh of relief, Harry allowed his senses to gradually adjust, careful not to overwhelm himself.

"Phew," he breathed out and watched as the soft glow of moonlight filtered through the curtains, casting a gentle illumination across the room.

Harry moved quietly, careful not to disturb Fleur's slumber, and lay down next to her.

As he settled in, he felt the warmth of her body next to his, a constant comforting presence.

He also felt her magical signature, a gentle warm thing that seemed to envelop him.

It was a sensation he had grown accustomed to, yet it never failed to bring him a sense of peace and security.

Fleur stirred slightly, her silvery hair cascading over the pillow, and Harry felt a surge of affection wash over him.

"Wha-" he managed to say before he found himself engulfed in a hug.

With a sleepy murmur, Fleur nestled closer, her arms tightening around him.

Harry smiled softly, gently stroking her hair as he savoured the moment.

At that instant, he felt a profound sense of peace and belonging that he had never known before.

That's when it hit, and Harry realised with a startle that he was in love.

.

Angel Alexis, thanks for the sub :]

Instagram: fake._.violinist

Patreon Link: [https://www.patreon.com/Mr_0ne] or do a Google search of 'Patreon Fake Violinist' -> "Ch. 56 - Water Demons"

Discord Link... [https://discord.com/invite/NJ3WV9RVgR]