The Secret Society Chapter 26

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"Lemon drop?"

Harry stared at the muggle candy being offered, remembering the time when he had asked Petunia if she could buy it for him. It was years before he discovered he was a wizard. He still didn't know that denial would be all he could expect.

"Thank you, Headmaster," Harry reached into the bowl and unwrapped the sweet before popping it into his mouth.

Dumbledore looked delighted, saying, "I find it a travesty that most refuse my offer. While wizarding sweets are undoubtedly marvelous, muggles possess remarkable creativity that should not be underestimated."

Harry nodded absentmindedly, not interested in hearing about muggles and their creativity. He was still waiting for the old man to throw him off.

"I have noticed that you have been sending letters to Ms. Delacour with some frequency," Dumbledore remarked after a brief pause.

Harry wasn't surprised or angered that the Headmaster knew of this. He wasn't trying to hide it, and even if he was, he expected the old man to keep a close eye on him.

"I am."

"Veela are known for their passionate nature," Dumbledore said with a smile. "Being loved by one can be both a blessing and a curse."

"How so, Headmaster?" Harry asked, his eyes sharpening with interest.

"I'm certain you must be familiar with the legends surrounding the origins of the Veela?" Dumbledore leaned forward slightly, as if he were about to share a secret with Harry.

"You mean how Veela originated from the tears of the goddess Aphrodite? She apparently wept for humanity's lost ability to love."

"I see that you have done some research," Dumbledore smiled, "But I sense that you are not entirely convinced by what you have read."

Harry wondered what gave the Headmaster that idea. Was it the roll of his eyes or how he scoffed as he recited the legend? "The Veela are mainly located in Bulgaria, Headmaster. I doubt a Greek goddess did much of anything in their creation."

"Yes, I suppose that would be the most obvious clue," Dumbledore chuckled, "I imagine it could be a rumor that an ambitious Veela started long ago. But to be fair, Veela are indeed skilled at expressing love, albeit in their distinctive style."

Harry's thoughts flashed to Fleur's fanatic, almost desperate, look as she pulled him into a kiss. Even now, when he recognized her presence had made him accept her actions with unusual calmness, he desired her. And that was an understatement.

"I understand that you may have had personal experience with this," Dumbledore gently prodded when Harry remained quiet.

"I thought this meeting was supposed to be about my punishment, Headmaster," Harry said flatly. Not appreciating a man with unknown goals talking about a witch he liked greatly. It brought up questions he wanted answered, but he didn't want those answers tainted. If his affection toward Fleur needed to be pruned, it would be done with information he could rely on.

"Very well, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore acquiesced readily. "As Professor Snape is currently occupied, I shall take responsibility for your punishment. I believe it will be in the form of detention for a month. Do you find this agreeable?"

No, Harry didn't agree, though he suspected it was more of a rhetorical question. However, he wondered why the Headmaster was making it seem like he was his friend instead of someone in a position of authority. He had looked over the bylaws of Hogwarts for his situation, and the punishments had varied wildly. As surprising as it was, Harry was not the first to leave the castle and have some fun in another country. However, with the month of detention Dumbledore decided to give him, Harry became the one with the lightest punishment.

"Mr. Potter?"

"Headmaster," Harry had to stop himself from tensing in fear, "Can we stop playing games?"

He was outmatched in every way that mattered. Magic didn't even need to be mentioned since it would be an insult to Dumbledore. Still, Harry thought his habits formed in Slytherin would give him an advantage over the Headmaster. After all, someone who was used to hiding quite literally everything would feel secure when meeting someone who should have been an open book.

That assumption was shredded by Dumbledore's actions, and Harry knew he was out of his depth. Instead of playing to the Headmaster's tune, it would be better to be more open to regain some sort of agency in their interactions.

"Games?" Dumbledore raised a bushy eyebrow, "I'm afraid that very few would consider your actions to be mere games, Mr. Potter."

"What actions?" Harry asked directly, "Are you talking about how I saved Lovegood?"

"Ah, I see," Dumbledore chuckled. "So we're still pretending as though I haven't witnessed you blasting young Ashwood into the wall, multiple times, I might add."

Harry knew that the Headmaster was aware of what he had done, but hearing such an unambiguous confirmation from the man himself was more terrifying than he had ever thought. "So… What happens now?"

"I believe I have already presented my proposal, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore replied, feigning a look of confusion. "It entails one month of detention with me, every day after your classes conclude. I believe that should suffice to discourage you from replicating your excursion to Paris."

"And nothing for Ashwood?" Harry wasn't sure why he was insisting on pushing this, but he needed some sort of reaction from Dumbledore to know the limits. Because, at this point, it didn't seem like there were many.

"Mr. Ashwood had a brief stay in the hospital wing before going home for the remainder of the year," Dumbledore said without care, "It appeared he was quite frightened and preferred not to remain at Hogwarts. I suppose I could remove some House points if that satisfies you."

Harry stared blankly at him, wondering how it reached the point of negotiating how light the penalty should be. While he knew the rumors were never supposed to be believed, shouldn't a headmaster care for the well-being of their students?

"You may be curious as to why I am not furious about your conduct."

Harry twitched and glanced at the ring Fleur gifted him, wondering if it had failed.

"That splendid ring appears to be functioning as intended, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore chuckled. "At times, deciphering body language can be simpler than deciphering the mind."

"Right, of course, you already know about the ring," Harry muttered.

"And in the spirit of our candid discussion, I must inform you that the pendant you possessed on the night we returned to Hogwarts is wholly ineffective in preventing me from accessing your thoughts," Dumbledore replied calmly.

Harry shifted uneasily, realizing that the Headmaster might already know about Alex. Of course, he refused to bring that up since it involved a death, even if he had no part in it.

"Returning to the matter of Mr. Ashwood," Dumbledore carried on, disregarding Harry's discomfort. "If I were to penalize every student for causing temporary harm to others, a significant proportion of House Slytherin would be perpetually in detention or, more likely, expelled. Such a decision is neither desirable nor feasible, Mr. Potter."

That… explained a lot of questions Harry had about the traditions of House Slytherin. "You know everything that happens in my House?"

"I am aware that you expressed your dissatisfaction towards Mr. Malfoy rather excessively recently, which was quite a remarkable deviation from your previous interactions," Dumbledore noted.

Harry took a deep breath before exhaling slowly. This was beyond what he had ever imagined. The Headmaster knew there was a secretive, or maybe not so secretive, gladiator ring where Slytherin students ended up with broken bones, intense pain, and traumatic experiences.

"Yes, that was my reaction when I first became Headmaster. I wished to put a stop to it. No, I needed to put a stop to it. Regrettably, it was inscribed into the very foundations that none could intervene. The founders treated their Houses as fiefdoms, and Slytherin was particularly...unconventional," Dumbledore explained.

"… I see," Harry wasn't sure what else to say with the sense of defeat he heard, "That's unfortunate, Headmaster."

"That is very true," Dumbledore chuckled, "But I have had several decades to come to terms with it. Acceptance is something that I have learned to master."

Harry nodded as he wondered what else the Headmaster had come to accept. Did deaths also become allowable due to some strange reason? Perhaps that was why they were still talking calmly. Unless Dumbledore really didn't look into his mind when they returned to Hogwarts.

"Nevertheless, I must acknowledge that there was something that I was not particularly thrilled about, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore said with a slight frown.

Harry tensed, knowing this was where this meeting turned for the worse. It was a trick he had used before. Acting kind toward someone long enough to lull them into a sense of security before springing the trap.

"Your actions have resulted in Mr. Ashwood missing school in a crucial period, which is unfortunate. I would be thankful if you would apologize to him," Dumbledore said seriously.

Harry waited for Dumbledore to continue but was stumped when he seemed finished. If that was all the request entailed, he would have no issues accepting it. But surely this wasn't it.

"I assume this would involve me revealing that I was the one that protected Lovegood."

"Naturally."

Harry went over any possible trap before realizing that he was being idiotic. This was a wizard that just revealed his morals were not as upright as most of the world thought. While it seemed there were some loose guardrails, Harry was starting to assume Dumbledore would overstep them if necessary. It was frighteningly similar to his own morals.

With such a wizard, staying on the good side, or appearing to, was imperative.

"Of course, Headmaster," Harry nodded solemnly, "It's the right thing to do. I wanted to make Ashwood scared enough to leave Lovegood alone. Not ruin his future."

"Splendid!" Dumbledore beamed with pleasure. "We must always strive to be reasonable with our actions, and I find that you quite often are, Mr. Potter," he added with a nod.

Harry raised an eyebrow when Dumbledore got up from his chair and lit the fireplace. "Headmaster? What are you doing?"

"Oh, my apologies for being presumptuous. Would you prefer to use the Floo network, or would you like to travel by phoenix?" Dumbledore asked with a twinkle in his eye.

Harry flinched when a magnificent bird appeared in a burst of fire and warbled at him. "Pardon?"

"Well, it would be difficult to offer your apology from this office," Dumbledore stated as if it should be obvious, "Now, what's your preference?"

The thing Harry hated most was to have no choice in what he could do, and dealing with the Headmaster put him in that situation more often than not. In a thought exercise, what would he rather do?

Tell the Headmaster to stuff it, flip him a bird, and the bird a bird, before storming out of the office like he wanted to? Or amicably follow what the Headmaster wanted him to do and potentially land him in a situation where he didn't even have the protection of being in Hogwarts?

Obviously, the former. And he obviously knew he was being overdramatic since it was unlikely there was any real danger. Dumbledore had plenty of chances when he found Harry in Paris.

At least he had the choice of magical travel.

"Floo is preferable, Headmaster," Harry stood to join Dumbledore near the fireplace.

"Very well, you may go first. The destination is 'Ashwood Manor.'"

Harry grabbed a handful of floo powder, stepped into the fireplace, and threw down the powder, a flash of green fire roaring as he firmly said, "Ashwood Manor!"

A few seconds later, Harry stepped out to see an opulent living room with two adults standing a few meters away and coldly staring at him. He coughed as he patted the soot of his robes while ensuring his hand was near his wand. The adults were undoubtedly Ashwood's parents, and it looked like they were expecting him.

Before the tension had a chance to escalate, the fireplace roared with green flames as Dumbledore stepped out with a grace that Harry was envious of.

"Ah, Mr. and Mrs. Ashwood," Dumbledore greeted warmly as he approached them, stopping beside Harry. "I have brought the student I mentioned to you earlier. If you don't mind, may we allow Harry to speak with your son privately?"

"Privately?!" The man thundered, "Absolutely not! He almost killed my boy!"

Harry's eyebrows almost disappeared as he glanced at Dumbledore, silently asking if that was true. He got a slight shake of his head in denial.

"Let's not try to push a small disagreement such as this with exaggerations," Dumbledore said sternly, warm tone nowhere to be seen, "While I never condone violence, young Harry did this in defense of his close friend. I admit he was overzealous in his act, but he never put your son in life-threatening danger."

Harry had to stop himself from giving a look of approval at the Headmaster for his fantastic ability to spew such rubbish with a straight face. It felt odd to admit it, but he was starting to admire the man, though it equally increased his wariness.

"Headmaster Dumbledore, I will not let this-this boy go near my son without supervision!"

Dumbledore sighed before patting his shoulder, which only confused Harry.

"I apologize, my boy," Dumbledore said with a note of regret before turning to face the older Ashwoods. "However, I must insist that I be the supervisor, as I am the only one who can be impartial. If you cannot agree to this, I am afraid that I must return to Hogwarts with Harry and regretfully abandon the attempt."

When the man still seemed argumentative, Mrs. Ashwood interrupted and spoke for the first time. "We'll be fine with that arrangement. I hope you can convince my son to resume classes, Headmaster."

Harry stayed silent as they were led through the halls to Ashwood's room. He was confused as to why Dumbledore created this scenario but was curious to see what the increasingly mysterious old man was up to this time.

It was quite entertaining when he wasn't the focus of Dumbledore's thoughts.

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