Harry stared at the page and blinked. "So he was related to me then?"
"Yes." Hermione replied urgently as she slammed all of her reference books shut and placed them on a shelving cart. "Let's get back to Valahost Hall. Your library is bound to have loads on him. If you don't mind of course."
Ron decided to make a wise comment, "What if Seilftrist didn't like reading about himself?"
"Shut it Ron!" Hermione retorted.
"All right then," Harry said calmly, still slightly in shock about the newest discovery. Grab hold of me and we'll be back in Valahost Hall quickly." Ron, Hermione, and Ginny quickly cleaned up their study materials and took a hold of one of Harry's arms. Harry briefly concentrated and they soon found themselves in the library within Valahost Hall.
Hermione quickly let go of Harry's arm and threw her book bag onto one of the tables. She then rushed over to one of the many shelves and began to scan titles. "There's a possibility he could have written a journal or something. . ." Hermione muttered as she quickly scanned each book on each shelf. "Then of course, it has been generations since he lived. The family could have made or kept some sort of record."
"A journal, I wouldn't write in a journal. . ." Harry said.
Ron snickered and began pulling his notes out of his bag as he sat down. "Just a little more research for me and I'll be able to make a full report. As for a journal, that would be too convenient, don't you think?"
"Ever the optimist you are," Hermione commented absently.
Ginny poked Harry and when he leaned his head towards her she whispered, "You know, if I kept a journal I wouldn't leave it in the main library for any idiot to stumble across. Might as well donate it to a public library for all the privacy it would have."
Harry nodded, "That's a good point. I wouldn't want to put all of my feelings or events of my day on public display."
"So, assuming that Seilftrist kept a journal, or even wrote something down. Where would he put it?" Ginny whispered conspiratorially as she watched Hermione climb one of the ladders to reach a higher shelf.
"In a private study," Harry mused quietly. "Not necessarily locked up, but where it would be easily accessible to him, but still secret from everyone else."
Ginny nodded in agreement with Harry's speculations. "This looks like a treasure hunt! Where shall we start?"
"My private study upstairs. There isn't much in it though. Still private though, and the room was there when Seilftrist was around." Harry replied.
"Perfect!" Ginny whispered. She then raised her voice and directed it to Ron and Hermione. "While you're off hunting, I think that Harry and I will go off and find something else to do. We'll let you know if we stumble across or think of anything interesting."
They only got a response from Ron, Hermione was to absorbed in the task at hand. "Whatever suits you."
Harry and Ginny exited the library and quickly arrived at Harry's study. They scanned the room as they entered. Desk in the middle, chair at desk, a couple of book shelves, a window, and of course, walls with brackets for torches. "You know," Harry said, "this doesn't seem like a very good study. I think that it's a sham."
"You check the desk for anything suspicious and I'll tap the walls." Ginny instructed as she walked over and began knocked on the various stones that comprised the walls of the study.
Harry strolled over to the desk and began looking carefully through all of the drawers. Finding nothing he checked under the desk. Nothing. Just as he was about to report his failure, Ginny's fist hit a hollow stone.
"Bingo," Ginny said. She reached up and pulled the torch bracket on the side. The stone wall fell back and silently slide into the wall forming a normal sized doorway.
"How did you know how the bracket worked?" Harry asked in an astonished voice.
Ginny snickered, "Haven't you ever seen one of those Muggle movies? That's how it always works." She pulled out her wand, ('Lumos') and led the way into the dark room that she had discovered.
"I didn't know you watched Muggle movies." Harry said as he followed her in. On the way he looked at the secret door. When it was open no one knew that it could be closed and vice versa.
"Dad drags us to the movie house in the village every single time Mum goes off to some meeting or event, or even shopping." Ginny explained.
The pair examined their surroundings. The secret room was totally empty. Four stone walls, and no windows. The space was devoid of furniture. It seemed that it had just been a room that had been closed off, probably formerly for storage. "How disappointing," Ginny sighed.
Harry shook his head. His ring had told Harry the room's secret the instant he had entered. There was another secret passage from the room. He walked over and pointed to the floor in the center of the room. "Look at the design."
Ginny looked at the floor and examined the stones that made it. There was a small circle about one and a half feet in diameter. The circle was surrounded with similarly shaped stones that formed another outer circle. Basically it was a cut pie except for the circle in the center. "What about it?"
Harry walked back towards the secret opening from the study and pulled the bracket on the inside of the secret room. "We don't want to be disturbed." The door silently slid back shut and Harry walked towards the center of the room. "I think I have to be wearing this. . ." Harry explained absently.
Ginny watched him walk to the small center circle. Harry then tapped the center circle with his right foot. The stones surrounding the center circle fell downwards to different levels forming a spiral staircase. Harry motioned for Ginny to go first and he then followed her down.
The stairway ended at an empty stone hall. Ginny led the way down the hall and shortly they came to a set of double doors. Ginny reached for the knob on one of them and tried to open the door. "Of course, it's locked."
Harry chuckled and stepped forward and grabbed the doorknob, effortlessly turning it and opening the door. "Ladies first," he said bowing to Ginny.
"Why did it open for you and not for me?" Ginny demanded in mock anger.
"It's all in the wrist." Harry explained solemnly. They entered the dark room. "I think we need some light. . ." Harry said. "Lumos."
Abruptly blue and gold flames lit the room from several stand lamps set around the spacious room. The study was comprised of two floors. The top floor was open to the bottom through the balcony that ran the perimeter of the room. The top floor was filled with bookcases which in turn were filled with books upon books. Harry estimated that the top floor was bigger than the library they had left Ron and Hermione in.
The bottom floor was much smaller than the top floor owing to the fact that the bottom floor was merely a private study and semi bedroom. It had a desk and several chairs and other various pieces of furniture. The chair behind the desk looked particularly inviting to Harry. It would be heaven to sit back in it. The desk was filled with papers and open books, yet still neat. The top floor was a whole library that was probably as big as the total area the castle itself covered. "We must be fairly far beneath the castle for that all to fit up there," Harry commented.
"I take it that Seilftrist was quite the reader if that's his private library." Ginny said as she walked around and examined the various pieces of furniture.
Harry walked towards the desk and settled in the chair behind it. "This chair is the most comfortable one I've ever seen or sat in!" He looked at the materials on the desk. Nothing very interesting. It seemed that Seilftrist had been studying ancient spells before his death.
"Remember why we're here?" Ginny asked. "We need to look for any journals or accounts he might have left behind."
Harry quickly checked all of the drawers within the spacious desk. Parchment, dried up ink bottles, quills, gadgets and gizmos, various objects that Harry couldn't guess the use of and of course, bags of ancient sweets. "Nothing here," Harry reported.
"Let's check up there in that maze," Ginny said. She walked over to the spiral staircase in on of the corners of the room. Harry quickly walked over and followed her up. They made their ways to the bookshelves closes to the balcony overlooking the study. The books closer to the balcony seemed to have seen the most use. Finally they found a shelf with a row of similar unmarked black books.
Harry reached out and took the first one on the row. Carefully, so as not to damage the ancient book, Harry opened it to the first page.
The Private Journal of Fariney Seilftrist
Ginny looked over Harry's shoulder as he turned the next page. "Great. Just great! It's in Old English." Ginny sighed.
"It's not that hard to decipher. . ." Harry commented. "I just need to concentrate and think a little."
!@!@!@!@
After searching the library Hermione returned to where Ron was studying about Tescaster. "There's absolutely nothing about Seilftrist," Hermione sighed sadly.
"Don't worry about it," Ron said comfortingly. "It's not your fault that there isn't anything to find."
Hermione sat down across from Ron. "What did you find? Anything of historical importance that we could use?"
Ron nodded and proceeded to explain everything he had found out about Tescaster. "I reckon that the staff is hidden in Tescaster," Ron said. "We could go and look around if you could come up with anything to get us past the forest and into the ruins."
Hermione shook her head, "The Ministry made an extremely powerful amulet using their great knowledge and look what happened. Whatever power that was haunting the forest stopped playing Mr. Nice Guy."
"How would the forest become that haunted?" Ron asked. "What power would be able to do that to the forest? I don't seem to recall any spells that could even come close."
Hermione sighed grabbed one of Ron's books to examine the descriptions of the forest around Tescaster. "Nothing seems to be set to do the same thing," Hermione observed. "It does what is necessary and almost always different. It would take ancient magic to accomplish that. Magic that could operate on its own will and not at a magical person's constant direction."
"So it would have to be set by a wizard or witch at the beginning?" Ron asked trying to clarify it for himself.
Hermione nodded and set the book down. "Not just a wizard. It would have to be a sorcerer at the very least. Other than that, someone did set it there."
"Is there any way to stop it?" Ron inquired.
Hermione shrugged. "Probably. The whole idea though is to keep it maintained by itself. If you could just deactivate it from the outside it would be kind of pointless. Someone would have to be able to get into Tescaster and deactivate the spell or curse."
"How can you do that? The spell's whole job is to keep people out of Tescaster. How are you supposed to get in?"
"Whoever cast it, probably Seilftrist, most likely left a key or a secret way in. Like a condition or something. For instance, the spell wouldn't work while the moon was full, or maybe during a full moon in November, or perhaps when the planets are arranged in a specific position. Perhaps it could be something that is controllable a little more easily. A door open, a rock moved or placed in a specific position, maybe even a drawer left open or something." Hermione explained.
"What about the amulet that guy had? Could that have been it?"
"No Ron, that simply kept the magic at bay for a little while. I see what you're getting at though. There could be a key or something that would let the bearer pass safely. A ring, a necklace, maybe even an amulet."
Ron grumbled to himself. "So basically, Miledy Faisia is in Tescaster. That's a safe guess. There is no apparent way into Tescaster. That means that the staff is safe from Voldemort right?
"No Ron," Hermione said tiredly. "I'm sure that Voldemort is capable of doing much more than the amulet did. He's not stupid and he most likely has the remains of Nosyl Sharod with him. Eventually, he will probably gain entry into Tescaster and leave the spell in place to keep us out."
"Then how are we supposed to save the staff?" Ron demanded. "What about our own powers? We are Lieutenants to the High Lord of Phoenix! We might be able to face down the ancient spell."
"If Seilftrist hid the staff then he was the one who cast the spell. He was at very least, equal in power to us. Probably more powerful in fact, he had the staff to help him." Hermione pointed out.
Ron grinned smugly, "Yes, but you're forgetting something. Seilftrist was dead before the forest became haunted. There is no way he could have placed it."
"Very clever Ron, but no. I forgot to mention another thing. He could have placed the spell and then died. Then say maybe the special key event occurs. For instance, the moon becomes full. If the spell isn't working, the key that opens the door past the curse, will set the spell and make it effective."
"So you're saying that the people who are living in Tescaster are suddenly surrounded by this spell around the forest? That would have kept them in." Ron retorted.
"Then there are one time only spell jobs. The fire that burned Tescaster could have been set off by the half-moon or something else that would precede the event that would haunt the forest." Hermione continued.
"I see," Ron said finally giving it up. "Maybe we'll think of something later. For now though, let's just enjoy the holiday and hope that Harry and Ginny found something."
!@!@!@!@
Ginny returned from her explorations of the other bookshelves and books within the second floor of Seilftrist's secret domain. "Have you found where Seilftrist last left Miledy Faisia? Maybe the secret key to where he hid it?" Ginny asked Harry who was sitting in front of the book shelf that held Seilftrist's journals.
Harry shook his head numbly. "No. The last volume is missing."