Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter series, or any of its characters. They all belong to J.K Rowling and assorted publishing companies.

Warning: This story contains spoilers for Book Seven. DO NOT read unless you've finished the book, or don't mind being spoiled.

The Centaur's Discovery

Magorian reentered the forest, rubbing his hand gingerly across his chest. Although he usually displayed contempt for human magic, he had to admit that they had made great strides in the area of healing. During the battle, a Death Eater's curse had slashed his chest deep enough to reveal the white gleam of ribs. It was an injury that would have taken weeks to heal if he were among his kinsmen in the Forbidden Forest. And yet, only twelve hours after being healed by Madam Pomfrey, the wound was completely gone—not even a scar!—and the former stabbing pain in his torso had been reduced to a dull ache.

As he trod through the forest, making his way back to the centaurs' secret home, a glint of reflected light on the forest floor caught Magorian's eye. Striding over to it, he saw that someone had dropped a ring in a pile of dead leaves. The ring itself was made of burnished gold—although tarnished with age, it was clearly of a high quality. Set into the ring was a black stone, like an onyx, with an odd symbol carved into it. It looked a little bit like an eye, although more triangular than the eye of any creature Magorian had seen.

Magorian debated whether to pick up the ring or leave it where it lay. Either way, he could not linger here too long, for he must get back to his home in time for Bane's funeral. The brave and noble leader of the centaurs had not been as lucky as Magorian—he had been hit with the Killing Curse during the fight against Voldemort's minions. At the thought of Bane, tears stung Magorian's eyes. Of all the centaurs who lived in the Forbidden Forest, Bane was the most accomplished at interpreting the complex movements of the stars and planets across the heavens. He had also sought to protect the centaurs' unique and ancient way of life from the corrupting influences of other cultures. This had sometimes led to controversy—as when Bane banished Firenze from the Forest for accepting an offer to teach at Hogwarts—but it had allowed the centaurs to preserve their heritage despite the human Ministry's continual attempts to influence or restrict them. It had been Bane who taught Magorian all he knew of the centaurs' secret lore. And it had been Bane who, in the end, had persuaded his brothers and sisters to take up arms against Voldemort.

"Why should we interfere in a war between wizards?" Magorian shouted defiantly. "The constant warfare of the humans only proves their foolishness. We centaurs do not trouble ourselves with such concerns."

"You do not understand!" Bane shot back. "This is no ordinary conflict. Look!" He pointed upwards, to where Mars hung, bright and red, above them. "Mars has never been so bright or so large in my lifetime, nor in my father's lifetime, nor even in my grandfather's. This war will determine the shape of the world for decades to come, and if Riddle triumphs tonight, it may never end!" (The centaurs did not refer to Tom Riddle by his chosen name of Voldemort, for centaurs understood that names have great power.)

"Why should we risk our lives for the humans, who think us little more than a curiosity?" demanded Magorian. There was a murmur of agreement among the others, and he knew they were all thinking of Umbridge, who had had the gall to refer to their noble race as "filthy half-breeds."

"Do you remember what it was like for our people the last time Riddle was in power?" retorted Bane.

"No, I was only a foal at the time, as you well know."

"Well, I remember it. The Death Eaters hunted our kind for sport. Or they put us under the Imperius Curse and forced us to act as their mounts and guards in battle. Dumbledore's students and teachers may be arrogant, and they may not appreciate our wisdom—but at least they have never treated us like slaves or game animals!"

A roar went up from the watching crowd of centaurs, and soon men and women were strapping on quivers and testing their bows.

"We shall not be treated like that again! We shall not again suffer the indignities inflicted upon us by the Death Eaters! We fight today for the freedom of the centaurs, for the pride of our ancestors, and for the hopes of our foals!"

Magorian clutched the ring tight in his hand, thinking of Bane. Who would lead the centaurs now? Who would keep the ancient customs and lore alive? Who would teach the foals to cherish their heritage and be proud of what they were? Who would look to the stars and read in them the destiny of all the sentient races?

In his distress, Magorian had begun to fidget with the ring. Had he looked to the sky, he would have seen an omen there. Two planets shone faintly in the reflected light of the setting sun—Jupiter and Mars. Together, they could have told him all he needed to know about the ring he held: that it was an object of great power, but also one with the potential to bring trouble and strife.

But Magorian did not look to the sky, his thoughts absorbed in contemplation of the great leader his people had lost. Unconsciously, he turned the ring over in his hands.

Once…

Twice…

Three times…

There was a soft sound, as of hooves pawing at the ground, and Magorian looked up with shock into the face of Bane.

A/N: When Harry said that he left the Resurrection Stone in the Forbidden Forest, I thought, "Wait, he left it in the forest where anyone could stumble across it? Did he forget that the forest is full of sentient creatures, and that the Hogwarts students wander into it all the time despite its being 'forbidden'?" Then I wondered, "What would happen if someone came along and picked it up?" That's where the idea for this story came from.

I don't know anything about astrology, so I completely made up the thing about Mars and Jupiter. It seems logical though—Jupiter is named after the ruler of the gods in Roman mythology (hence the symbolism of great power) and Mars is named after the Roman god of war (hence the "trouble and strife" bit).

I also wasn't sure about how the centaurs would refer to Voldemort. On the one hand, they might view the refusal to use his name as "silly human superstition." On the other hand, some fantasy settings include the concept of names having power, in which case saying the name of the most evil person of all time might actually be a bad idea. In the end, I decided to have them call him by his real name.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the story. Please review!