The Dimension Wand

Written By Sada

Part One: Dark Times, Dark Magic: Darkover

Chapter Two: Finders Keepers

Ron trudged down a hall. Hermione's voice had left him a minute ago when they found the entrance to the library.

"What a stroke of luck," she had exclaimed. "It's the third door we looked in! It seems to be such a big castle too."

He had begrudgingly left her alone in it. It seemed to be deserted and sparse, but well maintained. She had quickly done the Translation Spell on the books and located the history section. She had propped open a thick book called "The MacAran History" then started yelling at him. "Ron, go!" she had said, "I'll hide behind this shelf. If anyone comes in they won't be able to see the floating book. I'll be fine. You know you are much more charming that I am. I'm most useful in here, and you are most useful out there." With that she pushed him out the door and shut it.

Ron sighed. For the past seven years, it seemed the three of them had done nothing but be useful. He just wanted a chance to be done with Voldemort so he could start living his own life, so they all could.

He turned a corner, and then quickly retreated back around it when he heard voices.

"Alderic," a woman's voice said. "I'm going to tend to the hawks."

"You've tended to the hawks all day Romilly," a man's voice answered.

"Yes, that's what I do. It's my gift you know," she said.

The man laughed. "As if I could forget. Okay, off with you. I'm sure your brother could use the help anyway, being so busy with the wedding."

"Yes, we must make time for MacAran breeding at its best," she replied disdainfully.

"Come now," he said. "They go well together. The families get along, and if she has strong laran, all the better."

Romilly sighed. "I suppose."

Alderic chuckled. "I need to tell your brother something anyway. The Council has been acting a bit peculiar lately with lots of talk about some new dark matrix. I hope it's nothing too serious, no more than usual anyway, but he should be informed. We'll meet you down by the hawks, okay?"

"Of course," she replied. Ron could hear one pair of footsteps march away, but another coming towards him. He looked around frantically and dove across the hall into the nearest room, shutting the door behind him.

The footsteps paused outside the door.

"Hello?" called the woman's voice. "Who's there?"

Ron's mind raced. Should he reveal himself as a servant? Rich people's weddings needed lots of servants. That could work. Or should he wait until he's actually seen one of these people. What if they really did have purple skin and three eyes?

He didn't have a chance to make up his mind, because the door swung open and Romilly, he assumed, was examining him. To his relief, she looked utterly normal and definitely human. She was dressed in robes that were very much like his wizard's robes. She looked about the same age as him, and even had the same color hair, which was pulled back from her face, but loose down her back.

"Hello?" she repeated. "Are you here for the wedding? I'm sorry, but the guest quarters are on the other side of Falconsward. Would you like me to show you the way?"

Ron stammered. "Umm, no. I'm just a servant. I was looking for the washroom. I was just outside and"

"A servant?" she exclaimed. "With that hair?" She threw her head back and laughed. "Well, it's nice to know that my brother is marrying into a family with a sense of humor. Tell me, is the bride as funny as well?"

"Well, at times," said Ron.

She smiled. "So what were you really doing over on this side of the Falconsward? Not that you aren't welcome. It's just that most of the guests seem content to gossip and connive in their guest rooms."

"I wanted to see the hawks," answered Ron. "But I got lost."

"Then why did you hide from me?" she asked, not missing a beat.

"I, uhh, wasn't sure if I could go see them," he said.

"Weren't sure?" She raised her eyebrows in confusion. "The MacAran animals are famous around Darkover. Everyone that visits wants to see them. I'm sure my brother offered you a tour. Why wouldn't you" her voiced trailed off and a nervous look crossed her face.

Ron didn't say anything.

"Your laran," she said. "It it's wild."

She stepped away from him. "Who are you?"

"I'm nobody. Just a minor guest. I'm always go off by myself. It was wrong of me. I'm sorry to cause so much trouble," Ron said quickly, trying to get around her to leave.

"There are no guests here running around with untrained laran, except for me," she said, moving to block his path. "Who are you? Why are you here? Are you trying to sneak in with our Comyn guests to do harm?"

"No, I'm not," said Ron. "I'm not evil. I'm not even Comyn. I just got lost"

"Don't lie to me!" she yelled. "Every redhead on Darkover is Comyn."

"No, I swear," stammered Ron. "I'm not from around here. I don't even know what the Comyn is. My friends and I got lost, and we saw the castle, so I decided to come in for help."

"Yet you ran," she spat.

"Yes, I ran. I'm sorry. I don't go barging into people's homes everyday. I didn't know anything about you. You could be evil for all I know. I'm trying to fight evil, not get all mixed up in it," he said desperately.

"Well, what are you then?" she asked sarcastically, "Oh great evil-fighting one."

"I I'm a Keeper," said Ron, blurting out the first thing that came into his mind.

"A Keeper?" she exclaimed. "Impossible, you're a boy. And all Keepers are Comyn. And they all have trained laran." She suddenly broke off with a look of apprehension flitted across her face. "Unless," she paused, "are you from a forbidden tower?"

"I I'm from the Gryffindor tower," said Ron, a bit confused that the term Keeper meant something to her.

"Gryffindor?" she asked, wrinkling her brow and looking a bit scared.

"Yeah," said Ron. "Don't worry. It's a good place to learn. We don't use dark magic, I mean laran, there. I'm not here to hurt anyone, I swear."

"Dark magic," she said, looking a bit more relieved but still suspicious. "You have a funny way of speaking. You must have come from far away."

"Yes," said Ron. "Very far. I'm actually trying to find my way back. My friends and I were kinda, flung out by accident. I think. To escape evil." He grimaced in confusion.

"Maybe you were sent," she observed.

"Maybe," said Ron quietly. "I just don't know what we are supposed to do next. If we just go back, the dark lord will still be there. We need to defeat him."

She was silent for a moment, then Ron was shocked to feel something, no someone, rake through his brain. "Oww! What are you"

She looked up determinedly. "I'm reading your thoughts. It's incredibly rude of me of course, but I think the situation warranted it. You do have some blockage up, so I know you aren't telling me everything, but what you are telling me is the truth. I trust you. I know what it means to escape darkness. I won't ask any more questions." She smiled. "Don't worry, I'll help you."

Ron looked grateful.

"My name is Ron Weasley," he said. "Your help would be very much appreciated."

She smiled.

"I am Romilly MacAran of Castamir. I pledge that I will do everything in my power to help you and your friends defeat the dark lord and get back home," she said. "Get your friends and meet me back here in two hours time." She looked around, "I must get back soon or my husband will be worried about me."

'Husband?' thought Ron. 'She looks no older than me and she's already married? Where and when the heck are we? I hope the others found out some more information.' He cleared his throat.

"Okay," he said. "What will we do then?"

"We will go to the Keeper at the Tramontana tower. I'm sure they can help you." With that she gathered up her robes and quickly strode away. Ron went to find the others.