A/N: For all the people out there who actually read my story, thanks
so much for reviewing and sorry the last two chapters were so short!
BTW, sorry if I have typoes. My fingers are frozen!

Chapter 5
Harry's Test

Harry, oblivious to the reputation the Gorenth Test held, made his
way slowly across the rough stone. His stomach growled, and he
realized with a pang that he hadn't eaten all day. "What great timing
the Ministry has," thought Harry. "They could've fed me before
locking me up. Oh, I wish I had a light." He blinked as suddenly, a
ball of blue light appeared in his hands. Startled, he dropped it, and the
brilliant flame died as it hit the floor. Curious, Harry again held out his
hands and concentrated on a light. Again, the blue flame rose in his
palms. This time, he took the time to examine it, bringing it close to his
face. It reminded him of the flame he had conjured up so many times
before with his wand. He threw up the flame like a ball, and laughed
in delight as the blue light bounced willingly. He felt no heat,
and nothing, not even a blister, formed in the palms that held the little
fireball. "What's happening to me?" he wondered, even as his hands
molded and shaped the flame fancifully into triangles, squares, and
hexagons. He still knew so little of the wizarding world, so was this
considered normal? Were wizards and witches able to do a bit of
magic without their wands?
Unknown to Harry, crystal scouts were hidden all about him.
Hundreds of feet above his head, the assorted witches and wizards were
gasping in awe as they witnessed a wizard, a child really, mold a blue
flame into glowing animals. Soon, Harry had dozens of his creations
floating about him. Birds glowing with the blue light of Harry's
flame flew graceful about him, providing him with all the light he'd ever
need. "Did you see that? Did you see it?!" yelled Fudge excitedly.
"We've finally found the One!"
"Fudge!" bellowed Dumbledore as he knocked down the door hiding
the twelve Ministry Officials with a spell. "What have you
done?!" "Er....Dumbledore..." acknowledged Fudge nervously as
he backed away. The others did the same. Dumbledore looked
dangerous, powerful, and angry. "I studied for years to pass the

Gorenth Test," whispered Dumbledore. "And even then, I barely made
it out alive, though I didn't pass. Now, you send an unknowing boy," he
pointed to the giant crystal the others had been staring into. Harry was
pictured inside, picking his way careful along the treacherous road with
his magical lights about him. "Do you realize, that Harry has no idea
of what he's getting himself into? That he doesn't even know what the
Gorenth Test is?" Dumbledore looked contemptuously down at the
cowering Fudge and his associates before whirling around and making
his way to Harry. "I have to save him!" thought Dumbledore to
himself. Those nitwits in the office were obviously not going to help.
Harry had never been more confused in his life. He felt great
power course through his being, but he didn't know where it had come
from. The passageway, once lighted, revealed a tunnel. "Where did that
come from?" he mumbled to himself. He could've sworn he'd felt no
wall before. It seemed to stretch forever, and Harry, peering
ahead, could predict no end, turn, or split in the path. He desperately
wanted his wand. He knew nothing of his new capabilities, and wanted
his old friend to point him in the right direction. Knowing there was no
way he'd be able to get out the way he had come in, Harry raced along
the tunnel.
Harry finally stopped to catch his breath after a few minutes. It
seemed to him that this tunnel was just what it appeared to be...endless.
Harry moved to lean against the wall when a familiar voice shouted,
"No!" Harry froze. The voice belonged to none other than Professor
Dumbledore.
Harry turned and ran toward the voice. Dumbledore again
shouted, "No!" He stopped. "What am I supposed to do?" he yelled
back. "Harry, run away from my voice. Nothing is as it seems in this
place! Now go!" Harry complied, running blindly away from the voice,
and, a few minutes later, he ran smack into Dumbledore. Utterly
confused, Harry gripped onto Dumbledore's robes. Dumbledore was
guiding him toward the exit when he felt a sharp pain in his scar.
Moaning, he collapsed. "My scar!" he gasped. Dumbledore looked
quickly at Harry's ashen face and helped him up. "Hurry!" Dumbledore
said as he guided Harry through a section of the seemingly solid wall.
Harry was blinded by pain. Closing his eyes tightly, he felt
himself lose consciousness.
Harry awoke in a familiar room. "How are you my dear?" asked
Madame Pomfrey, her face lined with worry. Madame Pomfrey? That could
only mean...."Wha....I'm at Hogwarts?" "Yes," said Madame Pomfrey.
"I'll go get Dumbledore. He wants to talk to you." She left the room.
Harry, left to himself, tried to get up, and was again, blinded by the
dull ache in his scar. Bits and pieces of information suddenly lept
into his head. He now knew, for instance, that Vodlemort had attacked
the Ministry of Magic and that Fudge had been kidnapped. But why? Harry
racked his brain, but nothing came to him.
"Hello Harry, I see you're awake." Harry looked up from his
musings and saw Dumbledore. "I want to know what exactly happened to me!
What was that place? What did Voldemort do?" "Calm down, I will tell
you everything," said Dumbledore softly.
"I first heard of the Gorenth Test while a young auror," he
began. "Only a few select people ever heard of it, and even a fewer
number of them knew what it entailed. I was proud and presumptuous then,
I knew I was more powerful than my peers, and it made me feel as if I
were above them. I immediately made it my business to find out all I could
of the Gorenth, and I trained hard..." "But what is it?" broke in Harry.
"Patience," said Dumbledore. "I'm getting there. As I was saying, I
trained hard, because it was foretold by Merlin himself that the one that
passed the Gorenth would be his chosen successor, a man of unprecedented
power. This man would be the greatest Wizard ever known, with abilities
Merlin himself, though great, never had. He would be the one to purge
the world of evil, to maintain harmony. However," here, Dumbledore
gave his mouth a bitter twist, "those who failed were destined to be a
plague on this earth, of which only one would be an exception, the
one who'd train the Chosen One. I was convinced of my own greatness,
so I took the test.
Now, you see, the others who heard this prophecy
feared the wrath of those who were fated to fail. They were called
the Order of the Phoenix, as they believed Merlin's spirit would arise
again in a destined individual, much like the phoenix rises from it's
ashes. A select group within the Order decided to tweak the test.
People like Fudge changed Merlin's trial so that it was a death trap.
They believed that, so long as the basic rules of the Gorenth
were preserved, the Chosen One would still manage to pass. What they
didn't count on, was the growing build up of evil power. You see,
each time a wizard fated to fail was killed, the evilness that was
supposed to be bestowed upon them was never handed out. When
Voldemort managed to fail the test but survive, all the pent up evil
was handed down to him, concentrated into almost invincible power.
It is now unknown if Voldemort has managed to surpass even the power
of the Phoenix. All because a few petty men tampered with the test."
Harry had never seen anyone look so bitter.
"Once I failed the test, I was looked upon with fear. People
believed I was about to turn against them, that the evil presided in me.
But I fought it, and managed to retain the extra power it gave me.
I joined the Order of the Phoenix and have dedicated my life toward
finding the One." Dumbledore bowed his head as he remembered. What
he said next nearly gave Harry a heart attack. "You are our Phoenix."