Book 1 - James Potter and the Hall of Elders' Crossing

Ralph took a deep breath. “You told me I was your man on the inside, didn’t you? So I’ve been
watching closely, looking for hints and clues about who might be involved with the whole Merlin plot, right?”
“And you think now is the time to discuss this?” Zane asked, raising his eyebrows.
“No, no, it’s fine,” James interjected. “What’d you see, Ralph? Something going on back at
Slytherin Central?”
“No!” Ralph said impatiently. “Not back at the common room or anything. Right here, just a few
minutes ago! Remember what we’re supposed to be looking for?”
“Yeah,” Zane said, becoming interested, “the Merlin staff.”
Ralph nodded meaningfully. There was a cheer nearby. The three boys turned as the Slytherins left
the pitch, surrounded by a crowd of students in green scarves. Tabitha walked at the head of the group, her
broom held triumphantly over her shoulder.
“Six feet or so of unusually magical wood,” Ralph said in a low voice, still watching Tabitha leave the
pitch. “Origins unknown.”
“That’s right!” James replied, understanding dawning on him. “Tabitha said her broom was a
custom design, crafted by some Muggle artist or something! She registered it as a Muggle artifact, since it
wasn’t a standard model!”
“And there’s no question that there’s something pretty unusually magical about it,” Ralph added.
James nodded.
“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” Zane asked incredulously.
Ralph glanced back at him. “Makes sense, doesn’t it? It’s the perfect hiding place! That’s why I
came running over here right after the match. I wanted you both to see it, too, and see if it fits.”
Zane whistled in awe. “Talk about your corked brooms! Here, all this time Corsica’s been flying
around on Merlin’s flippin’ staff!”
James couldn’t take his eyes off it as Tabitha crested the hill heading back to the castle. The wintry
sunlight glinted off the bristly tail of the broom. It was indeed the perfect disguise for a six-foot length of
highly magical wood. And now they knew for sure who was the third co-conspirator in the Merlin plot, the
Slytherin who went by the profile name of Austramaddux. James’ heart pounded with excitement and
anticipation.
“So,” he said as the three of them began to follow the Slytherins at a careful distance, wending their
way back to the castle, “how are we going to get the Merlin staff away from Tabitha Corsica?”
252