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Chapter 14


I woke up the next morning groggy and yawning. What a dream! I thought. Then, I got up and out of bed, and looked in the mirror on the wall.

As I examined my bed-head, I noticed a red mark in the shape of a hand on my neck. I gasped. It wasn’t a dream. We had met an elf in the woods, and he had tried to kill me and my friends. And now I was going to spend my entire Saturday before Christmas holidays talking about our little adventure.

After I got dressed, and raced down the stairs, hoping that Tonks was out in the earthy common room. But she wasn’t.

I was very impatient that morning, so I did the only thing I could do; barge into the girls dorms and drag out of her bed if necessary. I shook myself, and began to run up the stairs.

As I was about half-way up, the stairs seemed to have magically formed into a slide. As I attempted to stay upright, my Hobbit feet failed me. I raced back downstairs, and I heard a girl screaming behind me. With a thud I hit the floor of the common room, and the girl who screamed crushed me further. “Well, now I had both a terrible night and morning.”

I turned around to find Tonks’ foot above my head. “Tonks!” I cried. “I came up to look for you! How come I couldn’t come up the stairs?”

“Because you’re a boy,” she answered simply. Her hair was brown today, and she looked sour.

I would’ve asked her about it, if I hadn’t already known the reason. She was still obviously traumatized by last night. I didn’t blame her.

We walked down to Hagrid’s hut together, and soon met up with Jen and Charlie. They weren’t looking at each other, standing very awkward side by side. They still weren’t talking. When would they understand?

When we finally reached Hagrid’s hut, Tonks knocked on the door. When she knocked, I saw a glint on her finger, but she quickly hid it under her sleeve.

Immediately we heard barking, and Hagrid opened the door while trying to hold Fang back. Now, after how Hagrid had saved our butts in the forest last night, I felt I could officially trust him not to step on me. No more Hagrid-phobia for me.

He poured us each a giant cup of tea, and sat down himself with a grunt.

“So,” he said. “What the heck went on last night?”

I stared at him nervously. I didn’t know what to say to Hagrid. How could I explain the entire history of Middle-Earth in a day?

Well, I thought I would start with my race. I then began to pour out the story of Hobbits and the rest of the lost races. I talked about the Ring of Power, and how there were other Rings as well. “And the one Ring that the Lalanos wants is the one who belonged to the Queen of Lorien; a beautiful elf-maid named Galadriel.” I finished.

They all sat in silence. Fang had somehow jumped on my lap while I was talking. Was my lap his favorite place to stay?

Charlie was the first to talk. “Well, that explains a lot.” He was looking at me up and down, and I think he was talking about my height. I smiled at this. Charlie was the best to break tension.

Jen scowled at him. “We have to be serious about this, or is that impossible for a Gryffindor?”

“Can’t you take a joke? Or si that equally as hard for a Slytherin?”

“Alright, that’s enough you two,” barked Hagrid.

Jen gulped. “I can’t believe it. An entire world we didn’t even know about. Now I know how Muggle-borns feel when they first find out about us. So, the Ring of Galadriel is the last remaining Ring in the world?”

“That’s what I don’t get. It went across the sea to the Undying Lands centuries ago. I think he must have brought it with him through the portals.”

“But then he said something about the old tales,” said Charlie. “What did he mean by that?”

I shrugged. “I think he was referring to one of the old poems or songs in some of the history books.”

“Okay, let’s go to the library. They have thousands of old books,” answered Charlie, getting up from his seat.

“I don’t think so,” explained Hagrid. “If we never learned of this… Middle Earth is it called? We wouldn’t have history books on it.”

Charlie sat back down in his chair, looking slightly disappointed. “But the real question is,” Hagrid continued. “who has the Ring?”

We all looked around. I hadn’t even thought of that. Which one of us did have the Ring?

Then I turned to Tonks. She hadn’t spoken at all since the common room. She looked up at us all like a cornered animal. “Tonks?” I said, half unsure.

“Fine, I have it. Please, just leave me alone!” She folded her arms and put her head down. I could see a glisten of a tear fall down her cheek.

Hagrid patted his huge hand on her back. “Now, Tonks we don’t want to get you upset. We’re sorry if we’ve made you uncomfortable, but this is a dangerous object you have. Please, just show us it, and tell us how you’d gotten it.”

Tonks raised her head to look in to Hagrid’s eyes. She smiled and put the Ring on the table. I could feel that she was reluctant to let it go, but I suppose the Ring hadn’t taken her too far.

It was a beautiful silver color with a diamonds studded around it. My eyes widened. “Mithril,” I muttered.

“What?” asked Jen as she too stared at the Ring.

“Mithril,” I repeated. “It’s the rarest metal in the world. That Ring could buy Hogwarts.”

Tonks gulped. “Do you remember that day that Professor Ports held me back after class?”

I nodded solemnly, and shivered at the thought of my secret grandfather.

“Well, he said to me, ‘you have to take this for me. It’s a gift from me to you. Keep it well hidden, and most importantly, don’t let anyone touch it!’ I then took the box he was holding out to me, quite confused, and opened it. And I saw it, and I immediately put it on. I felt some sort of surge of power come through me like a lightning bolt. It was… exhilarating, but terrifying at the same time. I don’t really want to talk about it.” She fell silent once again, and my head was spinning.

“Ports! That no good…” I couldn’t find the words to explain him. I jumped to get up, but was stopped during full speed by Fangs massive frame on top of me. Not only was he now my grandfather, but now he had put my friend in danger!

Tonks then put a soothing hand on my arm. “It’s okay Bandy. I don’t blame him trying to give it away.”

I soon calmed down. “So, what should we do?” asked Jen quietly.

I sighed. “I suppose over vacation, I’ll spend my time in the library at home.”

Charlie smiled. “Yeah, and maybe I could look into the Muggle library at home too. I’m sure my dad would take me. He loves Muggle stuff.”

“I don’t think they would have books on Bandy’s world in a Muggle library.”

“Actually,” I spoke very slowly. “There was a historian of Middle Earth who was a man. His name was Tolkein. He passed it off as fantasy, but it’s all true. It’s called Lord of the Rings. Maybe you can read it over break?”

“I could try,” muttered Charlie. “But, how long is it exactly?”

“Oh for pity’s sake, I’ll read it Bandy,” said Jen, after realizing that Charlie probably didn’t have a very good reading span.

“Well, that’s that you guys,” concluded Hagrid. “We’ll meet again after break?”

We all nodded, and he then got up, finally got Fang off of me, and began to usher us out each with our own rock cake (which really didn’t taste good).

But as Hagrid was closing the door to his hut, Tonks quickly put her foot in the door.

“What?” asked Hagrid curiously, staring at her small foot.

“Can I have it back now?” Tonks questioned, pointing at the table. And by that, we all knew what she meant; the Ring.

Hagrid smiled. “Oh yes, of course. Sorry about that.” He then picked up the Ring off the table. He was rubbing it in his hands lovingly. He began to stare at it as if it was a baby dragon.

But as soon as the look came across his face, it was gone. He then handed it to Tonks, and closed the door.

Tonks instinctively moved to put the Ring on her hand, put I stopped her by lifting my hand in between hers. “You don’t want to do that. We don’t want you getting further in. If you must keep it close to you, put it in your pocket.”

She sighed and put the Ring in her pocket that was over her heart.

As my three friends walked ahead of me, laughing and joking, I was pondering things. Professor Ports, Hagrid’s behavior with the Ring, Tonks and her troubles, and Jen and Charlie. I sighed.

I felt as if the world was looming over my head by just a string, and it was breaking.