Samantha reached for the brass knocker hanging on the oak doors into Albus Dumbledore's office. Before she could slam the knocker against the brass, however, the door opened, and the headmaster appeared, his blue eyes sparkling behind half-moon spectacles. "Ah, Samantha. I haven't seen you in years. Come in, all of you! Ms. Starrin, you look marvelous. Might I offer anyone a crumpet or some tea?"
"I'll take some tea," responded Samantha.
"Me too," said Harry and Ron.
"And I," said Hermione and Mrs. Weasley. They all sat around a newly added circular coffee table in the rotunda of his office. They sat in silence, eating the warm crumpets and drinking tea. At first, Hermione seemed reluctant to take the crumpets. Harry noticed this, and shot a grin at Ron. "Elves," he whispered quietly.
"Hmm?" said Mrs. Weasley.
"Oh, nothing," came the reply from Harry. Hermione, however, seemed to catch what he said and shot both of them a nasty look. She took a large bite out of one of the smaller crumpets, and Dumbledore spoke. "I suppose you three are wondering why you are here," he said.
"Well, it has crossed our minds a bit," joked Ron. Hermione quickly slapped him.
"Well, it's difficult to find a place to start. You've all heard of Cassandra Trelawny, the great-great grandmother of our Divination teacher Sybil Trelawny? She was considered one of the most gifted Seers to have walked the Earth since Merlin's time. A large number of prophecies in the Department of Mysteries can be attributed to her. The Keeper of Prophecies has provided me with a copy of one of hers. One that involves the three of you." At this, he removed an inlaid Gryffindor seal from the table and flipped it over. An image of Cassandra Trelawny appeared on the other side, like a magical photograph. She didn't resemble Professor Trelawny much, but Harry did notice a resemblance. Her eyes seemed about two sizes too large for her head, though she wore no glasses. The image spoke:
The Dark Lord shall appear twice,
Defeated the first time by a child.
With the blood of his foe, he shall arise anew,
Only to be defeated,
By the boy and his friends.
Of the Three,
They shall be granted powers
Which none have seen
Since the time
Of Gryffindor and his friends.
The power of healing,
The power of foresight,
And the power to defeat the Darkness, once and for all
Shall be granted to the three
And they may succeed, though it is uncertain,
For the Lord of Dark has powers
Which not even Seers see.
Harry, having heard a prophecy not two months ago, reacted more quickly than Hermione or Ron. "Professor," he said. "Does that mean…does that mean that I don't have to be alone when I face Voldemort?"
"I'm afraid it doesn't, Harry. It does, however, tell us that you will not be alone in your battle against his minions. It means that your chances of defeating Voldemort in the final battle have just increased threefold."
"Professor," interjected Hermione, "What does it mean – we will be granted powers? More powers than being magical?"
"Yes, Hermione. You and Ron have been given powers because of your special relationship with Harry. The trust that you three share goes beyond friendship. Because of this, the three of you have been granted increased powers by the High Mages, who rule over magic in all its forms."
"Ron," continued Dumbledore, "you have been imbued with the of the power of Healing. This staff," he said, walking to a nearby mahogany cabinet, "amplifies that power. You'll also be able to easily create your own spells." Ron took the staff from Dumbledore and admired beautiful oak it was hewed from. Around the base of the staff, a single serpent wound itself, resembling the staff of Asclepius. The headpiece hat two snakes wrapped around it, and had to shining, golden wings protruding from each side.
"The original Staff of Hermes fused to a Staff of Asclepius. From the Asclepian Staff, you receive your healing powers. The Caduceus that acts as the headpiece gives the power of spell creation. Hermione, your staff," said Dumbledore, pulling the next one from the cabinet.
Hermione took the staff from Dumbledore, and examined it with scrutiny. "The Eye of Isis," she said, "the All-Seeing Eye. Professor, it's beautiful."
"This staff grants you the power to observe areas which aren't Unplottable, and areas which are not being specifically guarded from powers like yours. This castle has been made so that you can oversee all that goes on in it. Also, you can disguise yourself and anyone else without the aid of an Invisibility cloak. You can hide yourselves from Death Eaters, animals, or even anyone in this room. Finally, Harry," said he, pulling the third and final staff out of the cabinet. His staff was made of a black, knotty wood. On top of it sat a crystal, webbed in gold. Inside the crystal was what appeared to be a small model of the universe.
"Your staff increases your existing magical power. You can telepathically communicate with whom you choose using this staff, and your already astounding ability to do wandless magic has been increased exponentially. You can cast physical shields to guard against objects propelled at you, and magical ones to guard against stray spells. You will not be able to sustain these shields for an extended period of time now. However, with practice, you will be able to increase the time you are able to protect yourselves and your friends. Harry, you also are the recipient of this," Dumbledore said, pulling the Gryffindor sword from its place in the crystal cabinet. "Remember. Only a true Gryffindor can use that sword to its full potential."
"Thank you professor," said Harry, holding his staff lightly on his right side, "will we still need to use our wands to cast spells?"
"No," responded Dumbledore, "Mister Ollivander has said that he will transfer the cores of your wands to these staves as a service to the Order. I must ask you to give me your wands so he can do this tonight. He has promised me that you will have both your wand wood and your staves returned to you tomorrow morning." Hermione, Harry, and Ron reached into their pockets and extracted their wands. Harry's holly wand, Ron's willow, and Hermione's maple went into Dumbledore's hand, as did their staves. "I must be getting these to Mister Ollivander. I'll have Ms. Starrin show you to your new bedrooms. Samantha?"
"The north end of the seventh floor, Albus?"
"Yes, that's the one," he responded. Dumbledore's cloak wrapped around him, and the Headmaster disappeared.
"Goodbye, Ron," said a teary-eyed Mrs. Weasley, "I don't like that you're going to have to battle with the Death Eaters, but at least you have the Order for help if you need it. Train hard – if you are going to have to do battle, you may as well do it so that you won't be defeated. Harry, you too. Rid the earth of that foul man. Hermione, watch over them. Make sure they use what little common sense that they have," She sobbed. "You all make me so proud," she cried loudly. Mrs Weasley grabbed some of the shining Floo powder from the mantle, and disappeared into the green flames.
"Well, if you're all ready to go to your rooms," said Samantha, leading the three friends out of Dumbledore's office. Harry grabbed his trunk, Ron his, and they held Hermione's between themselves. They walked up three flights of stairs, through a tapestry, past the Fat Lady, and to a gargoyle of a lion. "Password," it roared. "An Heir wishes to enter," responded Samantha. The lion stepped aside, and the trio entered their own private wing of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
AN: If anybody wants more information pertaining to any of the staves, just e-mail me. My address is bill.the.defendermyrealbox.com. I currently have all five books sitting next to me, so I'm pretty sure of all the facts. I don't believe that JK has ever mentioned what Hermione's wand is made of, so I took a wild guess. If you're having trouble imagining the headpiece of Harry's staff, just watch the movie Men in Black – "The Galaxy is on Orion's belt."