Harry Potter and The Staff of Azkaban

Chapter 2

Hermione and Harry headed to Professor Dumbledore's office. The silence while walking was stinging Harry's ears. He couldn't imagine what trouble they would be, maybe he found out they overheard his conversation with McGonagall. Harry didn't say a word to Hermione for the whole walk, they both knew something serious had happened. 

As Dumbledore's door came into view, the two picked up their pace and rushed towards his office. Harry could hear Dumbledore's voice, it sounded concerned and scared. This was one of the only times Harry listened to his voice and felt fear.

They arrived at the door.

Hermione looked at Harry, signaling to open the door. Harry reached for the door and opened it, it made a creaking sound, which put all eyes on them. 

The big arches filled the room, they were marked with texture. The bookshelves outlined the room, towering up, staircases on each side. The office had a vintage look and was filled with wood. Dumbledore's desk lay in the middle of the room, intricate designs wrapped it like a blanket. Harry joined the line of students already in there. 

Harry looked at the rest of the students that filled the room. Ron, Ginny, Hermione, Draco, and one other Hufflepuff student. Who's that? wondered Harry.

The Hufflepuff girl had coffee brown hair, freckles centered around her nose, she had brown siren eyes, topped with long lashes. She was a bit shorter than the rest, but not far behind. Her face was framed with curtain bangs, up to her chin. Her hair was up to her elbows, and her resting face was quite serious. Why had she been amongst the lot that was asked to be here?

"Now, you may be wondering why I called all of you here." Dumbledore started, "And if you haven't, you should." He started to pace back and forth from his desk and back. 

"It's important that you all should know this, as you all are correlated in this... Mess. Before I tell all of you this sensitive information, this is a serious topic that shouldn't be mentioned elsewhere. I called you here because I wanted to inform all of you about the staff. The staff of Azkaban." There was a long silence. As if Dumbledore knew that his secret was out, that he couldn't go back. Or perhaps he was deciding if he should continue or not.

"Where was I, oh yes, the staff. The staff is a horcru- never mind. It's an item that we need to destroy. Now. The staff was made by Voldemort himself, an artifact that contains part of his soul. The staff can destroy any living creature and possess anyone who doesn't know how to use it right. Long story short it's dangerous, and it can cause serious harm." Dumbledore walked slowly to his desk and took a seat, sighing, and leaning back in his chair. 

Ginny shifted her weight to one side, Harry could tell everyone was getting restless and were all shocked and scared. Hermione was biting her nails, a habit she was trying to stop. Harry noticed the Hufflepuff girl rubbing her eyes, she seemed shocked like she already knew what the staff was. Dumbledore continued.

"That is why I selected you six, I believe you are the perfect group to help destroy this thing. You will go in exactly a week, next Thursday. You will find the staff and destroy it. Before you leave, I want you to know, that the only way to destroy the staff is to cover it in Pheonix tears." Dumbledore reached into one of his drawers and pulled out a small vessel, filled with clear, liquid, that glimmered in the sun's rays. 

He handed the vessel to Harry, giving a fake smile. He was obviously scared and agitated, but he did not want to show it. 

"Now, off you go!" Dumbledore waved his hand in a signal to leave and headed to the back of his office, out of sight.