Harry Potter and the Sphere of Madness

Author's Note: I relented.  This is the sequel a lot of people asked for – specifically, it's for the trilogy 'Harry Potter and the Two Draughts', 'Harry Potter and the Possessions of Voldemort', and 'Harry Potter and the Obsidian Tome'  I'd suggest you read these first, but I've tried to keep it somewhat independent, so you can follow along anyway.  Still, I'm rather proud of the trilogy, and if you haven't read it, I'd encourage you to do so.

Also, this story is going to be rather short – probably around 15k words, and it will have shorter chapters.  I'm also not going to commit to an update rate, although I hope to at least get them out once a week.

Finally, I'd like to say that although I liked the ending to the trilogy, if you think this sequel will end up having everyone in the same places, you're in for a surprise.

Disclaimer: This story is provided by the author 'as is' and does not contain or represent any expressed or implied ownership of any fictional characters and/or creatures created by J.K.Rowling.

"So, how was work today?" Ginny asked, emerging from the kitchen as Harry exited from the fireplace.

Harry smiled and replied, "Simply unspeakable."

"Erg," moaned Ginny, "That was funny after your first day.  The second, I chuckled politely.  That joke is 19 years old now – give it up!"

"I told you staring at those white walls could do funny things to a person's mind," Harry chuckled and gave his wife a kiss.

"Can you take the cooking for a minute, dear?" Ginny asked.

"I don't know," Harry laughed, "are you sure that's safe?"

Ginny tried to look stern and said, "Far safer than you refusing, trust me!"

Harry took over the oven, a touch worried.  Last time he tried to finish cooking for Ginny, he made the mistake of following the directions exactly.  For the wrong recipe.  Fred and George still gave him a hard time at family reunions, asking for his famous Onion Cookies.

Harry peered at the cookbook and watched as Vincent Viscoli instructed how to tell if the casserole was done.  Resigning to the fact that he had little hope of getting the dish out like the Viscoli's, Harry called out, "So how was your day?  Phil let you off early?"

"Yeah," Ginny replied offhandedly from the living room, "We only had paperwork today, to cover all the raids on Monday.  Oh, it turns out that Phil had a conversation with his boss yesterday.  Seems there is a cache of enchanted muggle objects around St. Ottery Catchpole the ministry's been unable to track down."

"Really!" Harry laughed, "I still don't understand how Arthur hasn't been caught.  What set them off this time?"

Ginny poked into the kitchen and looked inside the oven.  "Dad got a muggle billiard table.  I think he went five minutes before he got bored with pool balls that stayed on the ground.  Anyway, a muggle airliner landed with a cue ball lodged in its wing."

Harry laughed even harder, and finally asked, "So did he conjure a replacement?"

Ginny snorted.  "Actually, he gave up.  He's lost 13 balls – the cue ball was the only one found yet."

Before Harry could react, a voice called from the living room, "Harry Potter."

Harry quickly took advantage of the situation and left his wife with Vincent and the casserole.  When he entered the room, Harry took in the frail face of Dumbledore sticking from the flames.

"Albus!" Harry called, smiling.

"Harry," Dumbledore replied, "We've got a problem.  I'd like to talk with you at work tomorrow."

Harry frowned. "What is it – can you tell me over the floo?"

Dumbledore took a moment, and then finally said, "It's about the Sphere of Madness."

All the color left Harry's face, who took a moment to collect himself.  "I can be there in two minutes."

"No," Dumbledore enigmatically replied, "It's not urgent."

Harry wanted to ask what Dumbledore was talking about, but his profile had already retreated from the flames.  Ginny came out from the kitchen and saw the worried look on her husband's face.  "What's wrong?"

Harry, still puzzled, responded, "I don't know.  I'll find out tomorrow, though."

"Dumbledore said something about a Sphere of Madness, and you sounded really worried."

Harry grimaced and sat down.  "Are you sure you want to hear about this?" Harry asked slowly.

Ginny studied his face carefully.  "No.  But you look just like you did back at Hogwarts before you ran off to do something heroically stupid.  So you should probably tell me."

Harry couldn't help but smile.  "I'll have to work on hiding that better."  However, his tone turned grim and he continued, "You know that I defeated Voldemort at the end of my 7th year.  But what isn't known was that he wasn't killed – he was trapped.  The sphere of madness was guarded by a powerful spell, but apparently it was broken and Voldemort is loose again."

Ginny's mouth dropped in shock.  "You… You-Know-Who is back?"

Harry frowned and said, "I don't know.  I assume that's what Dumbledore wants to talk about."

Ginny gulped nervously.  "You-Know-Who is back?  19 years, and he's back again?"

Harry quickly said, "We don't know that.  I just know that Dumbledore wants to talk to me about the sphere tomorrow.  It's far too early to worry about this."

Ginny and Harry looked at each other for a few long seconds, neither one wanting to show how nervous they were about this.  Ginny finally softly said, "I think the casserole's done."

Harry and Ginny talked through dinner, but both of them knew that their words weren't doing very well at hiding the silence behind them.

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