Chapter 4- The Ring

"Ow! Get off me!" yelled Harry at whatever had jumped on him. Drool was coming down from his attacker's mouth and splashing all over Harry. He was acting like a dog that hadn't seen his owner in decades. It finally dawned on Harry that this was not one of Voldemort's minions. A Death Eater would not pounce on his target, but use some sort of spell. This was just a crazy old man.

"Finally," he yelled again. This time, Harry got a good look at him, and there was only one word to describe him: hideous (hih-day-us). He only had one eye, and it was three times the normal size, with veins popping out all over it. His face was just a sea of wrinkles, and it looked like his nose and mouth were upside down. "Finally!"

"Finally? Finally what?" asked Harry, trying to push the guy off of him.

"Finally!" he thundered, jumping off of Harry and throwing his hands into the air. "A customer!" He brought his arms down, and began tapping his fingers together with a menacing look.

"Um… yeah," said Harry, just relieved to not have to deal with a Death Eater. "Where am I anyway?"

"You are in The Itchy Man's Burrow, the greatest shop in all of Knockturn Alley!" the old man exclaimed. He suddenly spun around, giggled quietly, and walked behind an ancient cash register. He put his elbows down on the counter, and rested his head on top of his bandaged and mangled hands. "Now… what can I interest you in?"

Harry sighed; he didn't want to make the man feel bad, but there was nothing in the shop that Harry was even slightly interested in. In fact, most of the items made Harry feel as though he was going to throw up.

"Um… I'm sorry, but there's really nothing-" said Harry slowly before the man interrupted him. He glared at him with his one massive eye that had a distinct twinkle to it, and suddenly pointed to a small and cobweb-covered sign above him. Written in dark red ink, that Harry thought could have been blood, were the words: "You enter, you buy

something, lest you die." Harry swallowed hard. Even though the man looked old and weak, he probably knew a few magical tricks.

"Yes, you see," hissed the man, "if you leave without something from my store in your hands, you will explode. I've enchanted all of the exits, so don't even try."

"Well, I can see why this place is so popular," said Harry to himself, looking around for a cheap and non-disgusting item that he could quickly buy. Harry looked behind the register, and saw an assortment of different jewelry. Maybe he could buy something for Cho. Quickly looking at the selection of different earrings, necklaces, bracelets, and… rings. Those seemed to be the greatest of all the jewelry available, and Harry took a closer look at them.

There were at least a hundred rings pinned to the wall, each with its own unique Stone and symbol, though they were all almost exactly the same size and shape. There were gold rings with ruby phoenixes, there were jade rings with crystal stars. All of them looked incredibly expensive, and Harry only had a galleon and a few sickles left after his spree at Fred and George's store.

Just then, Harry's attention turned to a single ring. It was in the very bottom, right hand corner, and it had a single cobweb over it, as if the spider were trying to hide it from view more than it was already. From the looks of it, this one didn't appear too expensive, with its rather dull ring and not very shiny Stone.

"How much for that one?" asked Harry, pointing to the ring and trying to sound casual. The tattered man looked at where Harry's finger was indicating, and reached a bandaged hand over to it. He brushed away the cobweb, and blew the dust off of it as he brought it forth. He stuck out his bottom lip, rocked his head from side to side, trying to get a good estimate.

"How much ya got?" he asked. Harry took out his galleon and three sickles, and the man quickly snatched them away. "Well what do you know? That's exactly how much it costs!" He gave a toothless grin, and popped the ring into Harry's hand.

Then, just as the ring touched Harry's palm, he suddenly felt a power rush through him. He felt a surge of energy and excitement flow through his bloodstream, and all the way up to his brain, electrifying his body all the way. Harry quickly slipped the ring onto his finger. He brushed it off a bit more, and realized that the dull Stone was actually carved into the shape of a skull with one crystal eye and one ruby eye. Now, in fact, the skull was no longer a dull gray, but a brilliant black that shone like the darkest Stone. The powerful feeling that Harry was experiencing only increased while the ring was on his finger…. Maybe he wouldn't give the ring to Cho after all, he smiled to himself.

"Will that be all?" grinned the man.

"Well, seeing as you did take all of my money…" said Harry.

"Ah yes, I forgot about that," he said. "You can leave now… you won't explode."

"Alright," said Harry, walking towards the door. "Oh, and thanks for the ring."

"No problem," coughed the man, heaving something large and disgusting out of his mouth just when Harry opened the door and left the store. When Harry stepped outside of the place, and saw that he was still in one piece, he took a look around. Though he had been to Knockturn Alley before, he had never been in this part of it. None of the other stores in the area looked any better than the one he had just been in; all of them appeared as though just one good wind could make them fall over. Even the sky

looked decrepit in this area: it was dark and gray, and the air felt heavier and rusty. It was nothing like Diagon Alley.

Now Harry had to find a way out of this place. He didn't want to go back into The Itchy Man's Burrow, nor did he desire to go into any of the other stores. He had to find a fireplace to Floo from that would allow him to return to the Weasley's. All Harry had to do was turn his head slightly to the side, and his prayers were answered.

It was like a Muggle phone booth, only much larger, and with a fireplace inside; a Floo Station. Harry ran over to it, and entered into it. It felt extremely calm and serene inside, the crackle of the fire and the silence from the horrible outside made for a very nice environment. There was even, attached to the side of one of the walls, a Floo Powder dispenser.

"I guess a lot of people must accidentally come here," said Harry to himself, wondering why there would be a Floo station in the middle of Knockturn Alley.

"Maybe the store owners purposely name their business closely to other popular landmarks," shrugged Harry, throwing some powder into the flames. "The Burrow!" Harry jumped into the flames and once again the world turned black and spun around quickly. A second later, Harry appeared right in the Weasley's house, before a distressed looking Mrs. Weasley, and a worried Ron.

"Where have you been?" demanded Mrs. Weasley, jumping at Harry, and putting her hands on his shoulders.

"Yeah, I was beginning to think you were another one of my missing sisters or something," grinned Ron. Mrs. Weasley, not turning away from Harry, whacked Ron on the head.

"Where have you been?" she asked again.

"I accidentally Flooed to Knockturn Alley," groaned Harry.

"Again?" said Mrs. Weasley and Ron together

"Yeah," grimaced Harry… he really had to stop doing that. It was the second time in… well, four years. His track record wasn't that bad.

"Are you alright, Harry?" asked Mrs. Weasley, trying to sound comforting, but not overly caring. She didn't want Harry to think as though she were treating him like a baby.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he smiled, then, rubbing his ring, "Yeah, I feel better than ever in fact."

"Well good," said Ron. "I guess you didn't have to go in the really bad stores."

"It appears as though you haven't been traumatized too badly," said Mrs. Weasley, eyeing Harry, just to be sure. "So, I don't think you'll object to me telling you that you will still have to go to school tomorrow. With that in mind, I think you two should think about heading to bed. It is almost midnight anyway!"

"Yeah, I suppose you're right mom," yawned Ron. He and Harry walked over to the stairs that were more tiring to climb than an entire mountain. Harry had not realized how exhausted he actually was. He and Ron quickly changed into their night clothes while Harry told Ron of his interesting time at Knockturn Alley.

"He really wouldn't let you leave until you bought something?" asked Ron in surprise, just before he climbed into his bed.

"Yeah, so I finally decided on this ring," said Harry, showing it to Ron.

"Nice," said Ron, nodding his head. "But, aren't you going to take it off before you go to bed?"

Harry looked at his ring… it was so beautiful…. He rubbed it with the tip of his finger, and watched the skull and diamonds shine. A small surge of excitement and energy flowed through him. Harry took a deep breath, feeling full of life.

"No," he said finally, climbing under the covers. "No, I don't think I'll take it off."

"Get up you two! Get up!" came the voice of Mrs. Weasley what felt like only a few seconds after Harry had placed his head down on the pillow. "Come on! The train is leaving in an hour, and you want to have time to get ready! Oh, and Harry, a letter came for you."

This comment made Harry jump out of bed and immediately get dressed. He ran downstairs, and asked Mrs. Weasley where his letter was. She gave it to him, and Harry was surprised that it had a Hogwarts seal on it. What was the school doing sending him letters an hour before the new year started? Harry ripped it open, and read:

Dear Harry,

After the Sorting Ceremony, I need you to come up to my office. I have something for you. The password is 'monkey cakes'.

Sincerely,

Albus Dumbledore

Headmaster

"What could it be?" wondered Harry, biting on a piece of toast that Mrs. Weasley had prepared for the two of them… but wait!

"Mrs. Weasley," asked Harry, suddenly realizing something, "how is Ginny coming to Hogwarts? I mean, she's spent most of the summer at Fred and George's shop."

"And they're bringing her to the Platform," responded Mrs. Weasley. "Both of them have very nice brooms to fly over with. I guess they'll be coming over about the same time we are. Which, by the way, would be much improved if you (she pointed to Ron who had just come down the stairs) hurried up in waking."

"Yeah, yeah…" yawned Ron, grabbing some breakfast and quickly eating it. "Let's just get this year started already. Are we leaving soon?"

"Just as soon as his majesty is done with his breakfast," said Mrs. Weasley sarcastically, bowing to Ron. He just rolled his eyes and continued eating. It wasn't long, though, before they were out the door and at Platform 9 ¾.

"Hey there Harry!" came a voice from not to far away. Harry looked over and saw Fred and George waving to him. He and Ron ran over to them.

"Hey there!" yelled Ron. "Did you bring Ginny?"

"Yup, she's already gone through," said George. Fred sighed.

"Kind of sad… this is the first year we haven't gone through this barrier," he said. "I almost wish I was going back…" He put a smile on. "Almost…."

"Yeah, whatever," said Ron, running through the supposedly solid brick wall that led to the train.

"See you Fred! George!" yelled Harry, running after Ron head first into the not very brick wall. Just like traveling with Floo Powder, the entire world turned black, but only for a second, and the next thing Harry knew, he was standing amidst hundreds of other students, anxious to get on the train. He quickly found Ron among them and they walked on board together, into their usual compartment. It was very nice and relaxing… this was one of the first times they weren't late or rushing to get on the train.

A few minutes later, after sitting there and chatting for a while, Harry felt his ring get a little warm, as if he were holding it close to a fire. Harry looked over at it, and saw that it was glowing a little yellow too….

Suddenly, Harry's thinking was broken by the compartment door opening, and his other best friend, Hermione Granger, stepping in. She walked right on in and sat down next to Ron.

"Why hello, Ron," she smiled, giving him a small kiss. "It's been nice talking to you." Harry raised an eyebrow.

"We've been talking through letters all summer," explained Ron, blushing a little.

"Oh really?" asked Harry, crossing his arms. "I don't remember seeing you write."

"Well, I mostly did it at night…"

"Even then I didn't-"

"After I saw you had gone to sleep."

"Ah ha," said Harry. "I see."

"And it wasn't only letters he sent to me during the summer," smiled Hermione. "Ron also sent me this." She pushed out her arm, and lifted up her sleeve. Revealed underneath was the most beautiful bracelet Harry had ever seen in his entire life. Even from just the little light coming in from the window in the side of the compartment, the bracelet shone bright like the sun… brighter even.

"Wow, where did you ever get that Ron?" asked Harry, in awe.

"On our vacation in Egypt," said Ron. "I actually found it in one of the pyramids we went to. I've just been saving it in my desk for the right occasion… or person."

"You didn't steal it? Did you?" asked Harry as the train started moving.

"Well, not really," said Ron. "It's kind of funny actually, the bracelet was just lying there in the middle of the room, as if asking to be picked up."

"It was just… lying there?" asked Harry.

"Yep, and I just happened to be the first person to see it. I hid it from the rest of my family, who'd either want me to return it or cash it in to save for later or invest in their business."

"Speaking of business," interjected Hermione, "I heard Weasley's Wizard Wheezes is doing quite well."

"Yeah, but me and Harry know the real secret to their success," said Ron.

"We do?" asked Harry.

"You do?" asked Hermione.

"Yep," said Ron, putting his hands behind his head and leaning back. "They sell Wizard Duel cards… that's where most of their money comes from." At this remark, Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Oh no, not that card game," she said.

"Hey, what's wrong with it?" asked Ron, sounding hurt. "It's a fun game!"

"Well, I like the fact that it teaches people about that many different wizards and items that have historical value, but it's just a silly game. I don't know why some get so obsessed with it."

"Hey!" said Harry. "That reminds me! I still haven't opened my packs of cards!"

"Oh don't tell me you're into that game too?" said Hermione. Ron ignored her comment.

"Really? You didn't? I opened mine as soon as I got home, before I realized that you weren't there."

"Did you get anything good?" asked Harry, looking through his bags for where he put the packs.

"Nah, not really," said Ron. "Just a few copies of what I already have mostly."

"Ah ha, here they are!" exclaimed Harry, bursting from his bag with the packs of cards that he bought. He threw them onto the seat next to him, and immediately grabbed the first one. On the front, there was a picture of a house elf.

"A house elf? Hah, don't expect anything good in that one," said Ron, peering over to see what Harry would get.

"Don't judge a book by its cover," said Hermione, looking over at Harry's card pack even though she said that she detested the game.

Harry quickly tore open the pack, watched the wrapper fall to the floor, and then magically disappear.

"Ahh, an Anti-pollution Charm, very nice," commented Hermione.

Harry looked through the cards, flipping through them as fast as he could, trying to find the rare one in the pack.

"Yeah, Grindylow, another Boggart," said Harry, naming the cards as he passed by them. "Hey a Kneazle! Speaking of which, where's Crookshanks, Hermione? I haven't seen her yet this year, and now that I think of it, I didn't see her much at all last year either."

"Oh, I put him in the storage compartment in the back," said Hermione. "Yeah, last year, Crookshanks was gone for most of the day, out catching food I suppose. Only really saw him during the late afternoon and evening. But, don't worry, I've only lost Crookshanks once at the beginning of the summer, I'm getting better at controlling him. Oh yeah, and-"

"Oh… my… god…" said Harry interrupting her, his eyes were wide, and he was staring at a single card in his hand, evidently the rare one.

"What is it Harry?" asked Ron and Hermione.

"Did you get a really rare one?" asked Ron.

"I got," said Harry, turning the card around, and showing it to them, "Voldemort."