Harry Potter and the Orb of Power

Chapter 29: Ron's Lucky Streak

    January's winter continued into February; the snow relentlessly pounded the grounds of Hogwarts, the air grew still chillier, and the icy drafts that blew through the castle halls were similar to walking through a line of ghosts. Harry was standing in the middle of the Quidditch field; his scarlet Quidditch robes were flapping in the wind.

    "Harry, it's freezing, we should probably call it a day," Angelina shouted over the whistle of the wind.

    "Yeah, I can't feel an inch of my body," Alicia chimed in, her teeth chattering in the icy cold wind.

    "We're going to have to play in these conditions when we play Hufflepuff, we have to be ready," Harry insisted, sounding thoroughly like Oliver Wood.

    "This is insane, Harry, let's go in and warm up. We'll all get pneumonia and none of us will be able to play," Katie Bell countered logically. Fred and George were nodding in agreement; Ron's usual red face was turning a disturbing shade of purple.

    "All right, let's go in," Harry sighed at last. "But if we lose to Hufflepuff, it's all your fault." The team chattered and staggered their way through the biting cold as they made their way back up to the castle. Harry fought the relentless frustration welling up in his chest and entered into the Great Hall. He knew it was too cold to be practicing Quidditch, and yet he was driving the team into practicing too much. Harry wanted the distraction, because without practicing Quidditch, he would only focus on the meeting of the Order of the Phoenix, and he'd only end up infinitely more frustrated than before.

    Since the meeting, Harry, Ron, and Hermione officially gave up looking for anything in the library. It was quite useless; they had been searching for the better part of a year and still managed to come up short of information. The meeting also was no help; every single member of the Order was speaking in vague terms that Harry doubted all of them understood. Hermione's insistence that they examine Harry's dream also turned up nothing. Just the same information that always led to no where. Harry sat down at the Gryffindor Table, took a deep, calming breath, and then took a warm biscuit from a nearby bowl. Munching on it idly, he looked at his watch and saw that it was the tenth of February, meaning that it was almost Valentine's Day. Harry's stomach swooped nervously at the thought. Would Hermione be expecting them to go out on Valentine's Day? And would Ron notice anything unusual? Harry looked at Ron, who was regaining a little bit of his usual color, and felt a twinge of guilt. He and Hermione had still not told him what was going on between them, and the longer they waited, the worse it would be when they finally told him the truth. And yet Harry himself didn't know what was going to happen. They both liked each other, but the fact that they were best friends made Harry feel a bit cautious when thinking about dating her. Ron and Hermione always argued and made up, but he and Hermione seldom bickered and argued, making their relationship stronger and weaker at the same time. Harry was snapped out of his thoughts when Hermione sat down next to him.

    "Harry, Ron, you both look freezing cold!" she gasped. "Where have the two of you been?"

    "P…p…p…practice," Ron stuttered, his teeth still chattering from the cold. Hermione gave Harry a disapproving look, but her eyes were warm all the same. She took Harry's hand into hers, and shuddered.

    "You're hands are as cold as ice," Hermione whispered distractedly.

    "I'll be all right," Harry whispered back, feeling the urge to take his hand away lest Ron notice, but at the same time wanting nothing more to hold Hermione's hand. Their eyes met, exchanging words that neither of them could say aloud, and their hands broke apart.

    "And you too, Ron!" Hermione sighed. "I'll get you two some hot chocolate." Hermione stood up from the table and proceeded to get two steaming mugs. While she was gone, Harry noticed Ginny and a familiar looking girl sliding into the seats opposite of them.

    "So you two are going out?" the other girl said in an airy tone of voice.

    "I don't know. I'm not sure he's ready for something like that," Ginny said, idly playing with her hair. "I mean, after all that's happened…" Ginny stopped mid-sentence, and, noticing that both Harry and Ron were listening to her every word, blushed deep scarlet.

    "Hey. You guys remember Luna Lovegood, right?"

    "Sure," Harry said.

    "Who are you going out with?" Ron asked, ignoring the introduction.

    "No one," Ginny said evasively.

    "My father once dated a veela," Luna said randomly, her wand sticking out from behind her hair. "He stopped going out with her because he said they have worse temperaments than a Huddly-Hairboar."

    "What's a Huddly-Hairboar?" Hermione asked, returning with two steaming mugs of hot chocolate.

    "One of the creatures The Quibbler reported on," Luna responded airily. "My father's always on the lookout for interesting stories."

    "Oh," Hermione said, giving Luna a shrewd look. "You're Luna Lovegood, right? You're in Ravenclaw."

    "Yes," Luna said, looking distractedly at Ron, who was sipping the hot chocolate.

    "So what are you guys doing for Valentine's Day?" Ginny asked the three of them. Ron choked on his hot chocolate while Harry busied himself looking for a spare quill in his bag. Harry thought he heard Ginny mutter something like, "Boys" but as he was practically under the table, he wasn't sure what he heard.

    "I'm not sure yet," Hermione said vaguely. "What are you doing?"

    "Luna, Neville, and I are going to The Three Broomsticks," Ginny responded. "After that, I have no idea."

    "Sounds like fun," Ron mumbled.

    "Do you want to come?" Luna asked, misinterpreting Ron's sarcasm.

    "Erm…"

    "Then it's settled. You can be my date," Luna said brightly. "I can tell you all about how I used to have tea parties with the garden gnomes when I was little. They are quite the gossipers." Ron looked pleadingly at Harry for help, but when he went to say something, Hermione gave him a sharp kick in the shins.

    "I'll talk to you later about the plans," Ginny said, with an ill-concealed smile. "Let's go do some of that Herbology homework." Luna waved good-bye to the three of them, and then walked out of the Great Hall with Ginny.

    "Why didn't you say anything to help me," Ron asked Harry, his face glowing scarlet.

    "Because it would have been rude to reject her offer," Hermione said, before Harry could defend himself.

    "I didn't see you volunteering to go out with them!" Ron countered back.

    "I already have plans," Hermione said back to him.    

    "What plans? You just said you weren't sure," Harry asked, surprised. It was Hermione's turn to blush.

    "You'll just make fun of me," Hermione muttered. Before Harry and Ron could say anything, she stood up from the table. "Prefect duties, Harry," she said, and dragged Harry away from the table.

    "See you!" Harry shouted at Ron, who nodded, appreciating the confused look on Harry's face. When Hermione and Harry were alone, patrolling the halls, he gave her a questioning look.

    "What was that?"

    "What was what?" Hermione said evasively.

    "Yeah, what was that, Mudblood," a cold, drawling voice came from behind them. Harry didn't have to turn to know that it was Draco Malfoy behind them. He was about to say something back when he turned and saw that Lucius Malfoy was with him.

    "Ah, Mr. Potter, and Miss…what is your name again?" Lucius Malfoy said with an icy grin on his face.

    "Granger," Hermione responded coldly. "Now if you'll excuse us, we have to patrol the halls."

    "I'm afraid not, Miss Granger. I have some questions that need to be answered," Lucius said. He took out a role of parchment and a quill. He gave them both another cold look. "How is it that two consistent rule breakers such as you were chosen to be school prefects?" Before they could answer, Lucius cut them off. "Why, Mr. Potter, were you chosen to be a prefect when your grades are exceptionally poor and your habit of lying grows worse each year?" Harry was about to respond to the insult but Lucius Malfoy cut them off. "The answer, quite simply, is that this is another example of the poor leadership that Dumbledore has given to this now wretched school." Hermione glared at Lucius as he took a few notes on his parchment. Lucius glared back, and seemed to have noticed the golden chain around Hermione's neck, the chain Harry had given her for Christmas.

    "And who might have given you such a pretty thing?" Malfoy asked coldly.    

    "Couldn't have been the Weasel, he doesn't have enough money to cloth himself," Draco said with a sneer on his face.

    "Ten points from Slytherin for such foul behavior," a voice said from behind Harry. He turned and saw Professor McGonagall walking down the hallway. Lucius, at length, turned away from Hermione and looked at Professor McGonagall.

    "Perhaps you should reconsider, Minerva," Lucius started to say, but McGonagall cut her off.

    "That's Professor McGonagall to you, Lucius, and I advise you that, during your inspection of Hogwarts, you not interfere with those doing their duty," McGonagall responded coldly. Lucius upper lip curled into a snarl and took another note on his parchment.

    "Very well. Come Draco; show me to the Headmaster's office." The two of them swept pass and down another corner.

    "Thank you Professor," Hermione said.

    "Take care around the Malfoys," Professor McGonagall said. "Leave Draco to the teachers if he acts up, but do not confront Lucius Malfoy under any circumstances. Especially you, Potter." McGonagall then returned to her office, leaving Harry and Hermione alone in the halls.

    "When will his inspection of the school be over?" Hermione moaned.

    "Whenever he has enough to sack Dumbledore, I suppose. He picked a great time to inspect him," Harry said.

    "What's that supposed to mean?" Hermione asked, giving Harry a confused look.

    "I don't know," Harry sighed. "I'm afraid that Dumbledore isn't on top of his game anymore. None of us are. This time a couple of years ago we would have almost figured things out, but now we're completely lost. It feels like Nicholas Flamel all over again, except this time a Chocolate Frog card won't save us." Hermione closed her hand around Harry's and looked straight into his eyes.

    "We'll figure things out, Harry," she said. A moment of silence fell between them, a powerful silence that Harry, oddly, did not want to break. He tilted his head forward and kissed Hermione on the forehead.

    "You're really something special, you know that right?" Harry whispered. Hermione blushed, and the two of them continued to patrol the halls, not bothering to separate their hands.

***

    "Ok everyone, this is it. We've practiced a lot, and I think we can win. Hopefully nothing like last time happens to us while we're out on the field, but if it does, we'll have to try harder," Ron was saying to the Gryffindor Quidditch team just as Harry arrived at the locker room. He had been held up by Snape in Potions class (probably a dirty tactic from Snape to cause Gryffindor to lose the match) and only just go there.

    "Let's go over the strategies one more time before we go out there," Harry said, clutching a stitch in his side from running to the locker room.

    "Got you covered, mate," Ron said, pointing at the board.

    "Good then, good," Harry said. The fervor Ron had over Quidditch was always a source of inspiration for the rest of the team.

    "We're the better team out there, so let's make sure we prove it." The team cheered and got ready to step onto the Quidditch field. Harry pulled Ron aside.

    "Are you ready for the game?" Harry asked him.

    "Just a little bit nervous, I think I'll be fine," Ron replied.

    "You can be better than Wood, just focus." Ron rolled his eyes, but Harry nodded fervently. "You can." Ron took a deep breath, and the two of them stepped onto the Quidditch field. The stadium exploded with applause as both the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff teams moved into position. Lee Jordan was announcing the match, introducing each of the team's players. Most of Hufflepuff's solid team from Harry's third year was still intact, with only the captain being different. Harry felt a twinge of guilt as he saw Wayne Hopkins, the new Hufflepuff captain, walk out onto the field. Shaking aside his feelings of guilt, Harry shook hands with Hopkins, and then mounted his broom.

    "Mount your brooms," Madame Hooch said over the roar of the crowd.

    Cedric used to be captain of Hufflepuff.

    Don't think about it now, Harry thought viciously, and when Madame Hooch blew the whistle, he kicked off hard, the cold wind biting at his face as he circled around the pitch. Squinting, looking for a hint of gold, any sign of the Snitch, Harry made his way through the Chasers, narrowly avoiding a Bludger. Twice he thought he saw the Snitch, but it turned out only to be a flash of someone's watch, a glare off of someone's glasses. Harry turned, following another sign of the Snitch, and saw Cho Chang in the crowd, waving a Hufflepuff flag. Harry felt his insides grow as cold as the weather around him.

    What did you expect? It's your fault her boyfriend died.

    It wasn't my fault! Harry thought, looking into the stands. Cho caught sight of him, and a sad look spread across her face. The two of them made eye contact, and the sound of the surrounding stands died away. Anger filled Harry up, anger towards himself.

    Cedric should be with her today.

    He's not, and it's not my fault, Harry thought, feeling himself doubting himself even more. Suddenly, Harry broke his eye contact with Cho when an explosion of cheering broke out. Harry's mind rushed suddenly back to the game, and for one frightening moment he thought Hufflepuff had gotten the Snitch. However, when he saw that Ron had the Quaffle and that the Gryffindors were cheering, he realized that Ron must have made a spectacular save.

    "Way to go, Ron!" Harry yelled, and shook his head, returning his mind to the game. This was stupid; Harry decided long ago he wouldn't feel guilty any longer over Cedric. And yet…

    The Snitch was hovering by the Hufflepuff goalpost. Harry shot forward on his Firebolt, going faster and faster. One of the Hufflepuff Chasers realized what was happening and flew in his way, sending Harry shooting out of the way and losing the Snitch. Harry saw Hufflepuff belting towards Ron. They weaved, avoiding the Bludger sent by one of the Weasleys, and they threw the Quaffle towards the far left goal post. Ron dived, swung off the broom, pelted the Quaffle with his hand, and then managed to swing back onto the broom, completing a spectacular save. The crowd roared again, and roared even louder when Katie Bell managed to put the Quaffle past the Hufflepuff Keeper, putting Gryffindor in the lead. Harry circled the field for more signs of the Snitch, but failed to see the fluttering, golden ball. As he circled, he spotted Hermione in the crowd, cheering with the rest of the Gryffindors. Next to her was Luna Lovegood, wearing an absurd lion's head hat and cheering what sounded like Ron's name, and on the other side of Hermione was Ginny. They were all cheering Gryffindor on, hoping that they would win the game. On the other side, Harry saw the Hufflepuffs cheering too, all wearing canary yellow clothes in support for their team. And despite all of the commotion, despite the loud cheering for another of Ron's spectacular saves, Harry felt a swelling feeling of loneliness.

    No one's cheering for you. You killed Cedric.

    It's not true! Harry screamed in his head. He saw the Snitch, it glittered temptingly in front of him; Harry shot forward to catch it, but his aim was off. Missing the Snitch by a couple of feet, the Snitch vanished once again.

    "Harry, are you all right?" Ron shouted, noticing that Harry looked distracted. Harry nodded, steeling himself, trying to focus on the game.

    He's dead because of you. Just like your parents. Just like Neville's parents. All dead because of you.

    No…, Harry thought, feeling overpowered by the hopelessness coming over him. Harry saw the Snitch again, twinkling ahead of him. He shot forward, but the Hufflepuff beater pelted a Bludger at him, sending him off course. The game was going on for too long. Harry turned to see Ron flip in midair, blocking the Quaffle again, keeping Hufflepuff from scoring any points. Harry flew over to Ron.

    "Harry, what's going on?"

    "Cedric…," Harry choked out, fighting the urge to scream aloud.

    "It wasn't your fault. You can do this Harry." Ron nodded fervently. "We can do this." Harry nodded and flew into the air, trying to focus on his surroundings. Ron made save after save while Harry searched for the Snitch. He saw the Snitch, hovering close to the ground. Harry dived.

    Let's take it together…

    Harry swerved out of the way of a Bludger.

    1…

    He ducked underneath another Bludger.

    2…

    He rolled between two Chasers, just managing to see Ron make a miraculous save by hanging off of his broom.

    3…

    He reached out at the Golden Snitch, seeing flashes of green light, then what seemed to be the Triwizard Cup glinting gold in the sunlight. The cup was hovering in front of him, innocently luring him into taking it. Harry closed his hand around the handle, expecting to feel the heavy cup and him being sucked away by the Portkey. Feeling the familiar weight of the Snitch in his hand, Harry took a deep, desperate breath, and closed his eyes, feeling his mind return to reality.

    This one's for Cedric.

***

    "Ron, you were amazing!" Angelina said, her eyes wide with appraisal. "Not even Oliver could have pulled off such saves!"

    "Well, I did have a Nimbus 2000," Ron said modestly, though his face was turning a deep shade of red.

    "The broom didn't make those saves, you did," Fred said, in a rare display of good will towards his brother.

    "You finally earned the name of Weasley," George said, in agreement. Surrounded by the team, Ron broke himself from the crowd to talk to Harry, who was sitting in the corner, putting on his usual school robes.

    "Are you all right?" Ron asked, his face full of concern.

    "I'm fine," Harry said. "You Kept awfully well today. I knew you could do it."

    "We both did it," Ron said, clapping a hand on his shoulder. "Come on, let's celebrate."

    The celebration over Gryffindor's latest win lasted for days to come. Countless people fawned over Ron's spectacular saves, putting Ron in the center of attention for once. Harry felt he thoroughly deserved it, considering that if he hadn't made those impossible saves, not even the Snitch might have saved Gryffindor. Now they were tied in first place with Slytherin, meaning that the next match would decide the outcome of the Quidditch cup.

***

    Before Harry knew it, Valentine's Day was upon him, and he still didn't know what Hermione's plans were. Knowing full well that Ron would know sooner or later that he and Hermione were going to, eventually, be going out, he decided to have a talk with him. Harry decided that, before he went out with Luna, Neville, and Ginny, he would talk to Ron. He managed to catch him in the Gryffindor Common Room, and he sat him down next to the fire.

    "Hey Harry. Is my hair ok, I want to look good for Valentine's Day," Ron said, nervously stroking his hair.

    "It's fine," Harry said, giving Ron a knowing smile. "I thought you weren't interested in going."

    "I'm not! I'm just…maybe I'll see some girls at the Three Broomsticks," Ron said, his face blushing scarlet. Harry nodded.

    "So what are you doing today? Going over Quidditch plans?"

    "About that, I've made a decision," Harry said, grateful for the distraction. "After yesterday's match…"

    "Now don't go blaming yourself," Ron said, shaking his head.

    "No, I mean, when I got to the locker room, you had everything under control. You went over the plans, you held the team together. I want you to be the captain."

    "What?" Ron asked, mouthing disbelievingly. "But I'm not…I'm just…"

    "You'd be a better captain than I ever could," Harry said. "I'm not taking no for an answer. We can tell the team at the next practice, whenever you call it."

    "Ok…" Ron said, still not believing what Harry had done.

    "There's more," Harry said, before Ron could lave.

    "You're not giving me a million galleons are you?" Ron said, giving Harry a flabbergasted look.

    "I just wanted to tell you that…well…you were right. About me and Hermione. You were right," Harry said. Ron's look faltered a bit, and, as Harry sat on tenterhooks, Ron broke out into an enormous smile.

    "Of course I was," Ron said. "I have an intuition, I call it relationship E.S.P."

    "Right," Harry said, punching Ron in the arm playfully. "Hermione told you, didn't she?"

    "Of course," Ron said, waving his hand dismissively. "And besides, like you two could keep a secret when you're holding hands patrolling." Harry blushed and was about to explain, when Ron held up his hand.

    "No ill will. No hard feelings. I wish you both the best of luck. As for me, I don't need it. I'm on a good streak, and only good things can happen for me."

    "Thanks, Ron," Harry said, feeling enormously relieved.

    "Well…I can't help being disappointed that you're not giving me a million galleons," Ron said, laughing. Harry burst into laughter, feeling that he hadn't had a good laugh in a long while. At that moment, the portrait hole opened, and Ginny, Luna, and Neville walked in.

    "You ready, Ronald?" Luna asked, her blond hair carelessly hanging past her shoulders.

    "She's something, isn't she?" Ron whispered to Harry. "I hadn't noticed before, but she's something."    

    "Right, she is something," Harry said, noting the bottle-cap necklace she wore and the fact that her wand was still tucked behind her hair. "I'll see you later." Ron waved, and jogged over to Luna, who had already launched into her theory that Valentine's Day was set up by Martians visiting the Earth. Hermione came down from her dormitory just as they were leaving.

    "I notice Ron isn't exactly protesting going with them," Hermione said with a slight smirk. "I think he fancies that Luna Lovegood."

    "Maybe," Harry said, giving Hermione a shrewd look. "Just what do you have planned for today, anyhow?"

    "Isn't that obvious?" Hermione said in a mock impatient voice.

    "Actually, no," Harry said, quite befuddled.

    "You can be rather dense when you want to be," Hermione said with a smile. "Of course I'm going out with you."

    "Oh..." Harry stammered. "I...just...well..."

    "Don't get all uncomfortable on me now," Hermione said, taking Harry's hand in hers. Harry took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and plunged recklessly onward.

    "I just don't want to ruin anything," Harry said quietly. And he meant every word of it. Harry was much too afraid that, eventually, he would say something wrong, or not do something the right way, and it would be over before it even got started.

    "Don't worry, Harry. You can't possibly ruin anything." The Common Room was empty, everyone seemed to be enjoying Valentine's Day at Hogsmeade. Harry remembered the teachers telling them that they would also be at the village, in case another attack was made. Harry wanted nothing more than to stay in the Common Room, next to the crackling fire. He walked over to one of the couches next to the fire, and Hermione sat down next to him, leaning against him. He, nervously, gently, put his arms around her shoulder, and, despite having butterflies in his stomach, felt that they fit together perfectly.

    The two of them sat in silence, not having to say anything, not wanting to ruin the perfect quiet that filled the room. Hermione sighed, and they both watched the fire crackle, its flames dancing in the fireplace, and for one of the few times in Harry's life, he felt the aching loneliness in his heart ebb away.

***

    After a few hours, the portrait hole opened, and Ron jumped through it, his arms filled with sweets. The bounce in his step was hard to ignore, and the broad smile spread across his face was telling a clear story of how his day went. Harry and Hermione were asleep on the couch, looking incredibly comfortable and very happy.

    "That's weird," Ron said aloud, his smile wavering. "I don't feel upset about that." He looked confused for a moment.

    "That's because you had the best day of your life today!" Ron shouted, his glee spreading across his face again. Harry opened his eyes slowly, and for a second he forgot where he was. His motion awoke Hermione, who looked and saw Harry.

    "Well aren't you two the bundles of fun. You fell asleep?" Ron asked, with a bemused expression on his face. Harry smiled, rubbed his eyes, and let Hermione sit up.

    "And why are you so happy?" Harry responded, watching his friend practically skip into the seat next to Hermione.

    "Oh well, not much," Ron said, looking at the ceiling. He clearly was bursting to tell them.

    "Go on," Hermione prompted, rolling her eyes.

    "Well, first off, I won thirty galleons at the Three Broomsticks in the Name-That-Drink contest they held. Secondly, a girl at the Three Broomsticks said I was the most handsome boy she'd ever seen." Ron sighed, clearly getting wrapped up in his memories.

    "Anything else?" Harry asked with a laugh.

    "The best of all: Luna beat me in chess." He had a victorious smile on his face, which Harry could not understand.

    "Erm...isn't that a bad thing?" Harry asked. Ron looked shocked.

    "Are you kidding? Not since McGonagall's chess set have I had such a challenge! She's not a chess pushover like you two, though I was really surprised; she doesn't look like she has much skill in a game like chess."

    "Well I'm glad you had a good day," Hermione said brightly. Ron tipped some sweets into their laps.

    "You need some chocolate before the feast. Mind, don't take the Chocolate Frogs. With my luck, I might find Ptolemy or Agrippa, finally." Harry took a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, while Hermione took a Cauldron Cake. Ron opened the first Chocolate Frog he got, and looked at the card.

    "Did you get either of them?" Harry asked, noticing the odd look on Ron's face.

    "No...but it's one I didn't know they made it."

    "Who is it?" Hermione asked, leaning in to see.

    "Mr. Ollivander," Ron responded.

    "Well, he is the best wand maker," Harry said, shrugging. "Hermione, take a bite out of this one." Harry held a greyish blue looking bean in front of Hermione.

    "I'm not taking anything you give me," Hermione retorted with a grin, pushing his hand away. Ron gave a loud yelp, causing Hermione to jump.

    "What's wrong with you?" Harry asked. Ron stood up, and started waving the card all over the places, as if it was on fire.

    "I found it! I FOUND IT!" Ron yelled. "I can't believe I found it!"

    "Found what?" Hermione asked impatiently, trying to snatch the card out of Ron's hand. Ron pulled it away.

    "Listen: 'Ollivander, whose first name is still unknown, is best known for his creation of the finest quality wands. However, his most significant accomplishment is his creation of the Orb of Knowledge, a clever device that answers any question the wielder asks.' Now look at the picture." He gave the card to Hermione, who held it in front of her and Harry. Harry didn't realize anything spectacular at first, except his moon-like eyes that even shimmered through the card. However, around his neck, was a golden chain, at the very end of which was a shimmering orb that looked a lot like a marble.

    "Oh my..." Hermione gasped, standing up as she spoke. Harry took the chain out from under his robes, and spoke, causing the Orb of Power to appear at the end. There was no mistaking it. This was clearly the same Orb.

    "Mr. Ollivander created the Orb of Power!" Ron shouted triumphantly, pointing at the card in victory.

    "But then why does it say Orb of Knowledge?" Harry asked, thoroughly confused. "Are there two of them?"

    "Probably not. The Orb of Knowledge. The name does sound familiar," Hermione said, her face screwed up in concentration.

    "The index of orbs that I was looking up way back when we did research in the library! I could have sworn I read that name!" Ron shouted with ill contained excitement.

    "It's worth a shot!" Harry said, leading Ron and Hermione out of the Gryffindor Common Room, shooting straight for the library. They walked quickly, running past a silver sentinel stalking the halls, and burst into the library. Ron went straight for the index of orbs and brought the dusty volume down onto the table with a loud slam, thoroughly disrupting Madame Pince. Giving them an evil scowl, she silenced the three of them. Ron looked in the back.

    "Where is it…right. The Orb of Knowledge." Ron flicked through several of the heavy pages, and finally landed on a page that had an old fashioned drawing of the Orb of Knowledge. Ron eyed the page, and found an important passage.

    "What does it say?" Harry said, impatiently.

    "Ok here: ‘The Orb of Knowledge was created in Egypt sometime between 300 and 400 B.C., by the great and legendary wizard Ollivander. The Orb, utilizing magic in its purest form, will answer any question the holder poses. Due to the nature of the knowledge, most wizards sought out use of the Orb as a means of securing power, earning the Orb a nickname of "The Orb of Power." Ollivander, sensing that the Orb could cause numerous amounts of damage and destruction, faded from history with the Orb, and hasn't been seen since.'"

    "So Ollivander created the Orb, which grants the user infinite knowledge. He takes it away and hides it. So how did the Longbottom family come to have it?" Harry said, trying to figure out its history.

    "Well, he said during the meeting that the Longbottom family has guarded the Orb of Power since the time of the Founders," Hermione said, as if that was the key to everything.

    "Hermione, for the millionth time, you need to elaborate when you have an idea," Ron said impatiently, but Harry shook his head.

    "Ron, the book on Malagar said that Slytherin and the Slytherin line are constantly trying to hunt down the Orb. Slytherin probably went after Ollivander, knowing he had it, and Ollivander then gave it to the one person that could probably guard it the best," Harry said logically.

    "Why the Longbottoms though?" Ron asked. "I hope they weren't all like Neville."

    "Well, maybe Neville's ancestor was a powerful wizard," Hermione argued reasonably.

    "We're missing one thing," Harry said. "How can Mr. Ollivander be alive since 400 B.C.?"

    "Yes, Mr. Ollivander has lived since the time of the Egyptians," Ron scoffed. "Great logic, Harry."

    "The book probably means the Ollivander family. I'm surprised the family lasted this long," Hermione said.

    "Well, this is a breakthrough. We know what the Orb does, we know its history. Now the question is: what does Voldemort want with it? In my dream, Malagar said that the object Voldemort was seeking could grant him immortality, and immeasurable power," Harry said, trying to remember his dream.

    "He's going to use the Orb to find something else," Hermione said, with a snap of her fingers. "That's why Dumbledore said the Orb was only a means to an end. Voldemort probably has more options in his rise to power, but what better device to use than something that will answer his question straight away."

     "Wait a minute," Harry suddenly said. "Malagar's seeking power right? She got her question answered; meaning that she probably knows what's going to help her get her power back. But then she said that she'd answer Voldemort's question next. They're looking for different things. That's odd."

    "Very," Hermione said, thinking.

    "Maybe You-Know-Who doesn't know about the object Malagar is looking for," Ron asked.

    "Or maybe he's letting her think she's looking for something else. Maybe he's using her, and for insurance he let her believe he was looking for something else," Harry responded.

    "We don't know enough to figure anything else out," Hermione said. "But it's a start. We just need to figure out where to go next."

    "And soon," Harry said grimly. "Because as soon as Voldemort figures out where the Orb is, he's going to come for it. And he'll strike hard."