Harry Potter and the Elemental Wands

Harry Potter and the Elemental Wands
Chapter 9 - The Secret of the Astronomy Tower

The weather was nothing less than idyllic on the Saturday morning. The sun smiled upon the Gryffindor team as they hiked out onto the Quidditch field. Only in the farmost eastern horizon could dark winter clouds be seen. The air was cool, but bristling with excitement.
Angelina gripped Cho Chang's hand in a gruff handshake. As hard as he tried to keep his eyes on Madam Hooch, Harry couldn't help stealing glances at Cho. He would tear his eyes away, muttering something about being peverse - and then it would begin again. There was always hope, he thought bitterly. Perhaps when everything was over ... but no. He was Harry Potter. "Over" was not part of his life.

Madam Hooch's whistle sliced through the frost morning air and Harry kicked off the ground. Soon he was high above the snow, the wind whistling through his hair. The other players were left far below - only Cho rose to the same height. She smiled at him and he hid his blush by turning away. The Snitch was nowhere in sight and Cho had reverted to her strategy of marking him instead of the Snitch.
He occupied the passing minutes with watching the game below him. Angelina could be heard as well as seen, barking out orders to her fellow team mates. Her individual words were not coherent, but whatever she was saying, it seemed to be working. The stadium erupted as Katie Bell shot, and scored.

Harry grinned to himself as the game began again.

Something white hot burned into the back of his neck, making him start. It was as if a spark of lightning had branded him, although it did not hurt; it charged him with energy and anticipation. For a moment, he could see everything - Dumbledore's benign face watching the game from the stands, Sirius loping fast amidst tall grasses - and then, suddenly, Voldemort's pale face loomed out of nowhere, his scarlet eyes thin and full of hatred. Harry jerked backwards instinctively, only to find that it had been an illusion. He found that he could not remember what he had just seen, only that - that he must look ... above him ...

He raised his head to stare at the cyan winter sky. A single raven flew past, casting the briefest shadow over his face before flying off into the horizon. A dark feather drifted down towards him, and he brushed it out of face. It fell down towards the pitch, and he stared up into the clouds for a hint - anything - to tell him why on earth he was doing this.

Then, out of the blue, he saw something floating amidst the lowest clouds. It looked familiar - a gnarled, twisted stick. A Wand.

Arandelle's Wand.

The call of Madam Hooch's whistle reached his ears but he ignored it, and urged his broom upwards. Harry reached out to touch the Wand, half expecting to be rejected violently by it. His fingers closed over thin air. It was an illusion.

He looked around wildly - had Voldemort come? - but all he saw was three red cloaked figures waving at him frantically from the green of the Quidditch pitch. Cursing lightly to himself, he swerved, and headed back to the ground. He had dismounted before his broom had stopped moving.

'What's going on?' Harry asked Angelina, who was white-faced.

'Arandelle,' was her reply. She moved so that he could see the unmoving figure behind her, being attended to by Madam Pomfrey.

'What happened?' he said, horrified.

'It was a Bludger.' Katie Bell came up to them, dirt and sweat marking her face. 'Two, actually. One after the other. She dodged the first one, but the second one got her.'

'It's a broken shoulder,' Harry heard Madam Pomfrey say as she stood up, dusting her hands off in a professional manner. 'Of course, the fall didn't improve her condition. I can fix the bones, but she'll probably be walking around with a sling for at least a week.'

Professors Dale and Sinistra loaded Arandelle onto a magicked stretcher and carried her away, followed closely by Madam Pomfrey. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry noticed Ron and Hermione hurrying towards him across the grass.

'It was a Bludger,' he told them before they could ask. 'Madam Pomfrey reckons it's just a broken shoulder.'

'The match's been cancelled,' added Hermione. 'I heard McGonagall tell Professor Vector. They don't know when the rematch is going to be.'

'Probably not for a while,' Ron said. 'What with Voldemort coming here and all. But why didn't you come down when the whistle blew, Harry?'

Harry cast a nervous glance skywards. 'Oh, I have a reason.'

---

It had started to snow, outside, around dinner time. The ceiling of the Great Hall was thick with grey and white clouds. But Harry had too many other things on his mind to worry about the weather (and the fact that it was nearing Christmas, and that his OWLs were slowly crawling towards him on his calendar). He explained to story of the Wand of Air to Ron and Hermione between mouthfuls roast chicken.

'D'you think that it was just because it was Harry?' Ron asked.

'That what was because of me?'

'I mean,' Ron explained. 'that since you're not supposed to be the wielder of the Wand of Air that it just wouldn't let you touch it?'

He shrugged. 'Maybe.'

'Or maybe,' Hermione put in. 'it wasn't the real Wand. Maybe it really was an illusion.' She stared at them knowledgably, giving Harry the impression that she already knew the answer. Ron, however, seemed completely at sea.

'What're you getting at, Hermione?'

'What I'm getting at -' she cast a furious glance at Ron '- is that, maybe it was just a clue to help us find the real place.'

Upon recieving blank looks for the second time, she shook her head at them. 'For Christmas, I'm getting you two a copy of Hogwarts, A History.'

'What?'

'Don't look at me, Harry,' she said with a small smile. 'Look up.'

And as he did so, it dawned on him. The roof of the Great Hall was bewitched to look like the sky outside. And if an image of the Wand was outside, then ...

'D'you think if we stood on each other's shoulders, we'd be able to reach the top?' Ron asked eagerly, his eyes bright.

'If we stood on the table as well, we might,' Hermione said. 'But I think we should get Arandelle on the top.'

'On top of what?' A weary but still-smooth voice came from behind them. They turned around to see Arandelle, still in scarlet Quidditch robes, left arm bound in thick white gauze.

'We'll fill you in,' Harry said, sipping from his goblet of pumpkin juice. 'All you have to do is meet us in the common room at eleven o' clock tonight.'

---

Getting into the hall was easy enough - even if the cloak only barely covered the four of them. Ron suggested that Arandelle should transform into a phoenix before Hermione reminded him that it was just as unlikely that a phoenix would be wondering around Hogwarts afterdark as it would be three students in an Invisibility Cloak. 'Of course,' she had added. 'It wouldn't be the same if we weren't at this school. So this doesn't really count.'

The Cloak swept unceremoniously into a corner, Harry climbed carefully onto the Gryffindor table.

'The Quidditch pitch would be about here. Get on, Ron,' he said, bending over slightly so that Ron could get onto his shoulders. 'Then you, Hermione. And lastly, Dandy.'

'Don't call me that,' she warned, but she nodded, exercising her shoulder slightly.

The human ladder wobbled precariously as Hermione climbed on, and then Arandelle. With her one good arm, she reached out into the grey-blue sky. She felt the Wand between her fingers, and grasped it firmly. A strong wind blew silently through the Hall, surprising Harry so much that he was very nearly blown over. And though he managed to keep his balance, Ron did not and he fell backwards onto the hard wood of the table, Hermione following. But Arandelle remained aloft, robes billowing violently around her ankles, and nothing visible supporting her. From his vantage point at an angle beneath her, it looked very bizarre to Harry.

'Arandelle!' Ron, startled, had called out. She turned to smile at him, and floated very gently towards them, clutching a small scrap of parchment in her hand. Her feet had barely touched the table when one of the double doors into the Hall opened, and a white-blond haired person stared in.

'Potter, what are you doing?' Malfoy asked scathingly. Then, 'Weasley? Granger? And - who are you?'

'Why are you here, Malfoy?' Ron asked, getting up quickly. 'Spying on us?'

Malfoy laughed what would have been a tolerant laugh if it had come from almost anyone else. 'Hardly, Weasley. Seems that all of you forgot that Astronomy class was on tonight. I was on my back to the dungeons, and I thought I heard something, so I thought I'd take a look.'

And suddenly, Harry remembered that he had lost his timetable.

'Well, none of this is any of your business,' Hermione said. 'So get back to bed.'

'Don't talk to me like that, you Mudblood,' he snapped. 'Sinistra's not happy with you. You might even fail, Granger. Wouldn't that be a pity?'

'Get lost, Malfoy,' Harry said very firmly.

'Make me.'

'He doesn't have to,' Ron put in, striding quickly towards him. 'I'll do it for him.'

Malfoy's face split into a grin. 'You and what army?'

'This army.' Ron pulled out the Wand of Fire. Arandelle was at his side in an instant, her hand on his shoulder to stop him from doing anything stupid. Malfoy's eyes narrowed.

'Get lost, Malfoy,' Harry repeated.

Draco's grey eyes flickered over the four. Then, without a word, he turned and slipped back through the door into the Entrance Hall and out of sight.

They exchanged glances. Hermione let out a sigh.

'What does the clue say, Arandelle?' she asked.

Arandelle half-squinted at the it. '"Give me food and I will grow. But give me drink and you may enter."'

Ron snorted. 'That would've been useful. In a roundabout sort of way.'

'We should go to the Astronomy Tower and apologize to Professor Sinistra,' Hermione said.

'Yeah,' Harry agreed. 'Yeah. That's a good idea. Come on, Ron.'

'I'll go back to Gryffindor Tower,' Arandelle said. 'I guess I'll see you tomorrow.'

---

A figure strode silently into the Entrance Hall. It was tall and unnaturally thin, with eyes that glowed like hellfire.

Voldemort glanced this way and that, then made for the stairs in search of the fourth Wand.

---

'Professor Sinistra?' Hermione gazed around the wooden door into the round room. Upon seeing no-one, she opened the door further and she, Ron and Harry stepped over the threshold.

The ceiling of the Astronomy tower was a transparent dome, so that the students could gaze at the stars without even going outside. The snow had eased, but there were still clouds obscuring the moon and the stars. Even with the gigantic silver telescope in the middle of the room, there was still plenty of space to move about in. A large globe of the world stood underneath one of the windows. The walls were decorated with maps of the twelve Zodiac, which moved with the seasons. Harry recognised his own Leo as he passed by. The starry lion yawned, curled up, and went to sleep before his very eyes.

'She's not here, Hermione,' he heard Ron say in a hushed voice. The cold, quiet atmosphere of the room made all students whisper when they talked.

Astronomy is about space ... Harry remembered his first ever class with the long-haired, white cloaked Professor. It's about space, and time, and stars. One star will swallow a thousand others in an instant when it dies. A Dark Star can suspend time so that you exist, yet are destroyed in the same instant. When you're playing with stars, you're playing with the most powerful forces in the universe ...

His scar burned suddenly, shattering his thoughts like brittle glass. It took a moment for the pain to pass, but the memory of it seared like white fire.

'Harry?' Hermione was watching him worriedly.

'It's Voldemort,' Harry said, rubbing his forehead. 'He's here.'

Ron's head snapped around. 'At Hogwarts?'

'Yes, at Hogwarts.' The one sentence was echoed by two frighteningly similar voices. The first was Harry's affirmation. The second, Harry recognize all too quickly.

Out of the darkest shadows in the room stepped Voldemort, his scarlet eyes flashing. Nagini, his snake, was draped across his shoulders, and his face was white and very bright.

'Touch my hand, Harry Potter,' the Dark Lord invited, holding out a hand. Harry noticed that it was covered in a kind of cold sweat - the kind you find in the deepest underground cave that trickles silently down from stalactites.

'No!' Harry yelled, shaking his head and backing away. Voldemort advanced.

'Don't touch him!' Ron said suddenly. His eyes were very wide, and he was brandishing the Wand of Fire which glowed red and orange. Hermione, too, pulled out her Wand. Voldemort narrowed his eyes, reducing them to slits, but then laughed openly and evilly.

'Mudblood,' he sneered, all too reminiscent of Malfoy. 'And a Mudblood's friend. Together, you three will be the first to die; a prime example of those who will fall when Lord Voldemort rises again!'

He lunged at Harry, who back away, one hand fumbling around in his pockets for his own wand. 'Saepta!' cried Hermione from across the room - a barrier charm that they had learned in Defense Against the Dark Arts. Her Wand glowed blue. Voldemort's hand crackled violently, inches away from Harry's neck. Repelled and staggering, Voldemort stared at Hermione.

'A Wand,' he muttered. 'Of course.' She looked back at him, brown eyes wide. 'I couldn't have attacked you when you had three Wands - but two shouldn't take considerable effort.'

'You don't have the fourth Wand, yet!' Harry yelled. 'You don't have a chance.'

Voldemort smiled, faintly and coldly. 'Oh, haven't you figured it out yet, Harry Potter, my fellow Parselmouth?'

Harry stared at him, edging slowly towards Ron and Hermione. 'Figured what out?'

'At the center of the Earth,' Voldemort quoted. 'The clue, you silly boy.' His tongue flicked at the the snake-like syllable. Nagini shifted around his shoulders.

'The clue-? How do you know-'

Voldemort's thin lips twisted into a smile. 'The letter. The letter you sent your godfather. It's not hard to read other people's mail if you know what you're looking for ...'

Harry said nothing. He had no idea what the riddle truly meant, but he wasn't about to admit it to his enemy.

'You're more ignorant that I ever imagined. And here I was thinking you were a worthy adversary, thwarting me at every turn. Luck must have been your guardian angel - yet here you are, in this very room with me. Really, I'd hardly call that luck. I was so close - but you had to be here too. Never again, Harry Potter, will you foil my plans!'

Across the room, Hermione gave a little gasp. Her hand went unconsciously to cover up her mouth. But something in the expression on her face told Harry and Ron that her astonishment went far beyond simple fear.

'Harry!' she whispered urgently. Though he couldn't hear her across the room, he could see her mouthing the words. She said something in his direction. It frustrated him not to be able to understand her.

What is it, Hermione? he asked silently, bridging the gap between the two minds.

He was startled when she replied. Oh, Harry! she said. That's brilliant. The Astringo Sententia spell ... it's still active!

Hermione, Voldemort's looking at me like I'm his beef jerky. If there's anything you want to tell me, besides that the spell is active, now would be a good time.

She laughed. The Wand, Harry! Voldemort knows where the Wand is.

I gathered that!

Out loud, Voldemort said, 'I'll give you one guess as to where the Wand is.'

Hermione, I'm serious - if you know where the Wand is, tell me!

The globe, Harry! The center of the Earth! The Wand is in the globe, in the corner!

And as the final puzzle piece slotted easily into place, Harry and Voldemort stared at each other, as only deadly enemies can stare. It was a standoff stare, as each waited for the other to make a false move. Voldemort slitted his eyes. The air seemed alive with tension.

The door to the Astronomy Tower burst open again. 'Harry?' It was Arandelle, gauze sling and all. 'You left the Invisibility Cloak in the Grea-' She stopped abruptly as her gaze fell upon Voldemort. 'What's going on?'

And as Voldemort turned around to face her, several things happened at once -

Harry leapt for the globe across the room.

Voldemort raised his own wand. 'Abeo!' he shrieked in an unearthly voice, hurling Arandelle into the door, which splintered and collapsed around her.

Ron ran up to him and, with a desperate yell, kicked him in the shins causing him to crash backwards and Nagini to fly from his shoulders. The snake slithered towards Hermione, who stumbled away from it.

Harry scrabbled at the globe. It's surface was hard and smooth, and he couldn't get a grip on it to pull it open. He pulled out his wand. 'Aperio,' he said, tapping the polished orb once.

He heard Voldemort laugh behind him. The sound filled him with dread - like he'd forgotten something. Something terribly important. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Voldemort's form shift into something else.

Animagus, Harry, you fool, he told himself. Voldemort's an Animagus.

His final form was terrifying. A serpent - not a Basilisk as he had thought at first glance - but a giant, scarlet-tinged snake. It's eyes were the same colour as Voldemort's own and its scales were a shiny and hard as dragon scales. And fast - in an instant, it was poised between Ron and Arandelle. It raised its fangs to Arandelle's face, ready to slash her face open, while its tail whipped around Ron's neck.

Harry looked wildly around for Hermione. Nagini was entangled around her limbs, her fangs hovering an inch from Hermione's pale throat. From where he stood, he could hear her whimpering quietly in fear.

And then there was the Wand. The top of the globe fell to the floor, an empty shell. The Wand glowed green, ready for him to take it. Yet, if he did ...

'That's right, Harry Potter,' Voldemort hissed in the voice of a snake. 'Take the Wand, and watch your friends die in the same instant.'

Harry froze, his fingers quivering inches away from the Wand. What was he to do? Should he let Voldemort take the Wand? If so, would the other three Wands be able to overpower the wielder of the fourth?

Hermione! he pleaded for help. She stared at him helplessly from across the room. Nagini's scythe like fangs were ready to plunge into her throat. What do I do?

I - I don't know, Harry! she said.

He's power hungry, Harry said flatly. He'd kill you all in an instant just to get his hands on that Wand. I can't let that happen.

She hesitated, but only for a split second. Don't worry about us, Harry. We'll be alright. With the Wand, you'll be able to defeat him, I know it.

I won't let him kill all of you!

Look around you, Hermione said gently. Remember what I said four years ago? You're a great wizard. I know it. We all do. Just do what you have to do.

His gaze flicked to Ron for confirmation. It was almost as if he had heard the whole conversation, his expression was that trusting even as he struggled for breath. A few feet away, Arandelle sat slumped amidst splinters of wood and stone, her Hogwarts robes tattered, an inch away from Voldemort's claws. The four of them exchanged a look.

Do what you have to do, Hermione repeated. Don't make it personal, no matter how much you want to.

Harry took a deep breath. Then another. Voldemort flexed his tail, making Ron jerk from side to side. 'Have you made your decision yet, Harry Potter?'

He cast a final look at Hermione. But she said nothing.

'Never.' Harry had to force himself to squeeze the words out from between his teeth. The snake emitted a disturbed hiss.

'What?' Voldemort snapped.

'NEVER!' This time, Harry made sure that Voldemort could hear him. His heart wrenched.

'Foolish boy,' the Dark Lord said, his rippling muscles visible through his skin. 'Not the sentimental type, I see. Very well. You've killed them now, Harry Potter. Everyone you hold dear will DIE!'

A blur of foul white passed over Arandelle's face, leaving a trail of scarlet blood and slashed skin. Ron gasped audibly; as the giant snake's tail stiffened. And from the corner of his eye, Harry saw Nagini rear back.