Chương 20: Behind the Magic

"I must begin my speech by announcing that any action taken against Dudley Dursley in the last six hours shall be declared null and void. I wish to state that the person in question has been on the Quidditch pitch since this morning. Therefore, any accusations or allegations against him cannot be held against his person, as his presence was witnessed by several individuals. Therefore, any charges that might be brought against him would have to be proven by irrefutable evidence. If there is no conclusive proof that Mr. Dursley is guilty, I ask that he be cleared of all charges and released as soon as possible. Do you have any questions?"

When the oration was over, a long silence reigned in the room.

In a large hall built of blue-grey stone, a long row of windows with yellowish panes and arched tops could be seen on the south wall. The daylight filtering through the windows illuminated the place with a soft, subdued light. On the north side, tapestries, some of which were tattered, hung on the walls and depicted the legend of a wizard and a strange winged horse. The floor was paved with black marble with an old Persian carpet almost as long as the room was lying. There was no furniture, only a funny copper device with a big glass bulb and an old travel case locked with an iron latch.

In the middle of the room, Dudley stood straight and proud after his fiery pitch. In front of him, gathered in a line like a jury court, the Hogwarts teachers stood looking at the young man with squinted eyes and low brows, except for Snape who was rubbing the bridge of his nose with a frown.

"Mr Dursley, I think there has been a misunderstanding about your coming here. We are not here to accuse you of anything," replied McGonagall in a tone of voice that tried to be calm.

"You mean Professor Sprout didn't haul me from the other end of the school, passing through a number of corridors, and bring me face to face in this room where most of the Hogwarts teachers are assembled to have me accused of another accident or, worse, judged to be expelled from the school?" said Dudley who was trying to show an innocent face.

"Although your expulsion would solve a lot of problems, Dursley, it is unfortunately a matter of another kind that concerns you today," snorted Snape through his teeth, still glaring at the young man.

'He's still mad about his classroom,' thought Dudley, trying his best not to make eye contact with the potions teacher.

McGonagall cast a subtle judging glance at Snape who only clucked his tongue in response. Turning to Dudley once more, McGonagall finally began explaining why the young man was present in this place.

"As you, and as we, the faculty of Hogwarts, have noticed that you are, Mr. Dursley, a case somewhat apart from the rest of your peers. In examining your circumstances, we have detected certain points that may enlighten us as to why you are..." pronounced the Professor of Transfiguration class before pausing to find her words.

"A walking, talking disaster worse than a typhoon," Dudley replied for the professor.

"Though that's not the word I would have used... It's true that you are Dursley prone to accidents," explained McGonagall trying to be concise.

The rest of the teachers, especially Snape, nodded in unison at the argument. Dudley did not hold it against them.

"That is why we are gathered here.To assess you, Mr. Dursley, on some possible abilities you may have which could help us to understand your case," McGonagall continued.

"Assessing?" replied Dudley, wondering at his teacher's words.

"Indeed. Filius, if you could proceed." asked McGonagall to the Charms Professor.

Nodding his head in agreement, the little professor, who barely reached Dudley's knees, approached the young man with swift little steps. Dudley watched the little wizard walk towards him, spotting a strange glint in the professor's eye.

"Good morning, Mr. Dursley. We haven't been able to exchange many words with each other since the beginning of the year, which we can admit was a bit eventful," chuckled the professor, earning him a displeased look from Snape.

"Before we start on what we have invited you here for, I think it's important for you to know a couple of things. To begin with, Dursley, what do you know about magic?"

"About what exactly, Professor?" replied Dudley incredulously at the question.

"Well, what do you think magic is, Dursley?" replied Flitwick promptly.

Listening to his teacher, Dudley began to ponder about the question seriously. Since his exchange with Terry this morning at the Quidditch pitch, the youngster had been thinking more avidly about the question of magic. Although taught at Hogwarts, the wizards did not seem to wonder too much about the question of what magic was.

Magic is magic. That's all it is.

There was no explanation of the subject, or at least the teachers didn't seem to bother to explain it to their students. In fact, this was the first time the subject of the provenance of magic had been discussed with the young man.

"From what I know, wizards manipulate magic. But for what magic really is... I must confess I don't know, Professor," Dudley replied truthfully.

On hearing the young man's answer, Flitwick nodded his head in appreciation without mockery.

"Excellent! That is already a good start. Most students, especially those from wizarding families, try to think that magic comes from them, which is actually totally false, no matter what the detractors say," the little professor replied with a slight smile on his face.

Some of the other teachers also agreed with Dudley's answer. The youngster thanked Terry inwardly for her wisdom.

"Magic, Dursley, if you want to describe it briefly, is an element of nature like fire or water. Although we don't know all of its deeper nature, all researchers on the subject agree that magic is the complementary element to the four alchemical elements or the five cosmological elements or any other similar subject the researchers of the wizarding world are working on," began Flitwick with vigor.

"Magic, as I was saying, is therefore an element present everywhere in the world. Some places are even densely enveloped in it and are considered magical sanctuaries such as Stonehenge, the Pyramids, or the Easter Islands to name but a few. Hogwarts, the very castle where we are standing, is one of the most powerful magical sites. And although we do not know where magic comes from, its existence is very real and it accompanies and shapes our world in many ways. Most people, Muggles, are unaware of it and do not perceive it. This is what distinguishes wizards, their sensitivity to magic and their ability to manipulate it. But of course magic cannot be simply wielded. Just as Muggles have created various objects to manipulate the elements of nature, wizards have created various tools to manipulate magic," said Flitwick as he designed his wand.

Continuing his demonstration, Professor Flitwick made a quick gesture with his wand, before casting a spell.

"Periculum!"

With a jolt from the Charm Professor's wand, blazing red sparks shot towards the ceiling, illuminating the room with a red glow. Dudley watched the professor's demonstration with great interest, still fascinated by what magic could do. But a question suddenly came to him. Why had some of the Hogwarts teachers gathered to explain this to him?

Finishing his little trick with pride, Flitwick looked up at Dudley again, the young man glaring at the small man from his tall height.

"Whether it be wands or spells, wizards created different tools to manipulate magic better and better. Flying broom, Remembrall, Portkey, floo powder, and so on… These are some of the few tools that wizards have created to simplify our life. But all of them have one thing in common, they help wizards to wield magic. As I said, Wizards do not produce magic on their own. They manipulate it." continued the Professor.

After a pause to allow Dudley time to digest all this new theory, Flitwick took a deep breath, which he immediately released with a sigh announcing a sensitive subject.

"Unfortunately, the misinformation about the source of magic, which is mostly widespread among old wizarding families, creates a misconception among the young wizards regarding their abilities. When the nature of magic is explain in Hogwarts, most of the time the young students are surprised, confused, or they simply denied it. As you see, for most people living in the magical world, magic is part of their daily lives and its presence is natural to them. As a result, many people confuse the fact that what defines a wizard is their ability to wield magic and not their magical 'power', since in reality wizards have no said 'magical energy' in them."

"A powerful wizard is in fact a wizard who can handle magic with great dexterity. Generally, older wizards learn to wield magic without reciting incantations, but still need thinking their spell - this is what we call chantless magic. And even among the best wizards, very few are able to wield magic without a wand. Only the most experienced or talented wizards are able to wield magic with their will only. Without this beautiful tool which is our magic wands and the spells that go with it, many wizards would be left almost without powers." continued Flitwick with a teaching tone.

Listening intently to his teacher's lecture, Dudley became more and more fascinated by the concept of magic and its abilities. The little professor's teaching taught him a great deal about wizards and why the magical world was the way it was. Magic is a power that can be wielded and is all around wizards, the only people among peoples able to touch its presence. Strangely, this reminded him of an old science fiction film he had seen with his father about something similar. But as Dudley racked his brains, he noticed that there were some inconsistencies in his teacher's lecture.

"Professor, I think I understand what you want to tell me, but... You say that wizards need wands to cast spells and that only the most experienced wizards can use magic without wands. But I have seen other wizards, or at least one, do magic without a wand or casting any spell. Harry Pot-... My cousin... I've seen him do strange things without a wand in his hand. Even I, I've experienced strange things," said Dudley trying to understand the logic behind all these new knowledges.

"Hihihi"

Flitwick didn't answer immediately, but simply laughed a little, which showed his good mood. It was clear that he was enjoying the topic of discussion.

"You are right, wizards can wield magic without tools such as wands. But this is often chaotic and leads to strange situations for the caster who often finds himself with more problems to deal with." answered Flitwick.

"As you know, a wizard, if he does not come from a magical family generally, discovers magic when he is confronted with a stressful or even dangerous situation. This is usually when the wizard manifests his or her relationship with magic, often resulting in funny scenes.... water turning sour, furniture burning or even involuntury Apparition in some cases...."

"What is Apparition?" asked Dudley swiftly.

"One subject at the time, Dursley. To much information would do you no good." responded the Professor, waving his wand under Dudley's nose.

Suppressing the urge to snatch the piece of wood from the short professor, Dudley remained silent and continued to listen.

"Still, altought magic is closely related to wizards, its essence is such that it is difficult to wield it without experiences and the right tools. As an example, you can take water in your hands to drink but you will quench your thirst more by taking a glass which is more useful and practical. It is the same with magic. A wizard with a wand will always be able to handle magic better with it than without it." stated the Professor with a smile on his face.

Although he still had many questions, Dudley conceded that his teacher's lesson cleared up many of the questions he had. Satisfied with his lecture, the little Professor took a breath to finish his speech.

"So to recapitulate, we wizards manipulate the magic that is in our world to perform our spells. We don't create it, we wield it. And this is true for 'all' wizards..." summarized the Charms Professor, still smiling.

Just as he finished his explanation, Flitwick looked at Dudley with a thoughtful eye before letting go of his smile and taking on a much more serious tone that quickly spread through the room. The change in atmosphere in the hall was felt by Dudley, who noticed that the other Professors around him had a much more solemn look on their faces.

"But in some instances, Mr. Dursley, there are exceptions to these rules, as there are everywhere in the world. Sometimes extraordinary cases arise and we have to take the appropriate measures to deal with these exceptional circumstances. And this, Mr. Dursley, is why you are here. To take the necessary measures to deal with you."