69) Wand Weighing Ceremony - 2

The Wand Weighing ceremony was an ancient ceremony performed during every triwizard tournament.

Severus understood the reason behind the ceremony. However he felt totally creeped out by the presence of Ollivander. The man had an eerie aura around him which gave him a weird feeling.

Those eerie silver eyes, which held otherwordly curiousity in them. It just unsettled him.

"Mr Ollivander will be checking the wands of every champion to test them!" Milicent Bagnold spoke up excitedly. She was the chief for this wand weighing ceremony today.

Ollivander walked to the Durmstrang champion.

"Mr Schmidt." Ollivander spoke in his usual soft and eerie tone.

Even Severus could see that Schmidt was creeped out by the eerie vibe of Ollivander.

Headmaster Fischer placed his hand gently on the shoulders of Alexander. It was a sign of reassurance for his school's champion.

Alexander flicked his wrist and a wand immediately came sliding to his hand from the wrist holder.

'Ahh! A clever one' Severus thought inwardly. Wand holders were a good investment. It were certainly better than time consuming action of taking wand from one's robe pockets.

He gently handed his wand to Ollivander.

"It's Gregorovitch's creation. Isn't it? Mr Schmidt." Ollivander asked gently.

Severus found it amusing. Ollivander would have already known the maker by the instant he held the wand. The man had perhaps decades of experience under his belt.

The Durmstrang champion nodded without any hesitation.

"12 ⅓ inches, Cherry with the heartstring of a swedish snout!" Ollivander said excitedly. He was enthusiastic about this creation. Cherry wands when mixed with a dragon heartstring, produced very powerful wands. They could only be wield by someone with a powerful strength of mind and unyielding resolve.

The other people were confused by Ollivander's enthusiasm, they dismissed it as his usual antics. However there were few in the room who understood wandlore. For them, the information wasn't useless like many in the room.

A person's wand spoke volumes about the character of its' wielder.

Severus saw the glint of understanding in Dumbledore's eyes.

He immediately decided to do some research and studies in wandlore. Surely there was something which Dumbledore had remarked from the words of Ollivander.

He too wanted to learn that bit of information about his opponent. While he was sure that he was greater in magical power than his opponent. The tides of duel never depended solely on power. Skill and surprise were the deciding factors.

Ollivander suddenly conjured a bouqet of flowers with a twirl of the wand.

"It is in good condition." He proclaimed as he handed the wand back to its owner.

Severus was surprised to not hear any comments on Gregorovitch like canon. Nonetheless it was his turn now.

He didn't like that Dumbledore was with him as his 'school support'. He would have preferred anyone other than Dumbledore in this type of situations.

He didn't hate the man. Instead he admired some of his ways. The man was a genius. And even then, he had to grudgingly agree that he would have rather taken the same steps if he were in Dumbledore's shoes. The man was the sole reason of Voldemort not achieving the perfect control of Ministry.

"Ahh Mr Prince!" Ollivander said with a sudden bout of excitement.

Severus sighed inwardly. His wand suddenly appeared in his hands with a flick of his wrist.

He handed his wand over to Mr Ollivander instantly. There was no need for him to make a conversation with the old wandmaker. The man had a penchant for spilling information about his clients and wands. He desperately wanted to avoid that line of conversation infront of everyone.

"Ahh! . . . 12⅓ inches, ebony and phoenix feather. A powerful wand, tricky to master, but steadfast in its' loyalty if earned." Ollivander said in a soft murmur. He twirled the wand in his fingers slowly, letting his silver eyes take a fond look of it.

Ollivander stopped twirling the wand suddenly. He took the wand between his fingers and conjured a fountain of wine from its tip.

"It's in good condition!" Ollivander said happily.

However instead of moving to the last participant. He still remained standing infront of him.

"Mr Ollivander." Milicent Bagnold said slowly. She didn't want to make the champions uncomfortable by the queer ways of Ollivander.

"Your other wand Mr Prince." Ollivander said softly. He didn't give a second thought to the words of Milicent.

It was his turn to be shocked now. He hadn't expected that Ollivander will blurt out about his second wand.

Severus remained silent for a moment amidst the curious murmurs in the room.

"Do you have a fetish for revealing people's secrets?" Severus asked dryly. His accusing glare met the eerie silver eyes of the ancient wandmaker.

Ollivander gave a hearty laugh at Severus' words.

Severus crouched down and took out his yew wand which he hid in his right leg by the use of a holder.

"Izz theré à rule for two wands, Dumbly-door?" Madame Maxime asked with a hard frown on her face.

Dumbledore remained silent for a moment.

"There are no rules allowing more than one wand for a task." Dumbledore spoke with a frown. He hadn't expected Mr Prince to have an additional wand with him.

The double wand was not a problem for him.

It was the wood of Mr Prince's second wand, the white wood brought back memories of another wizard.

Yew wands never chose ordinary people. They were also more suitable for combat magic.

"13⅓ inches, yew, Oh my! Marvelous. Simply Marvelous!" Ollivander said in a bout of sudden excitement.

"What is marvelous Mr Ollivander?" Severus asked instantly. He didn't like the theatrical behavior of Ollivander even a little.

"Your wand core. Mr Prince. I had never thought this. It's really unique to use. A complimentary yet uncommon combination!" Ollivander gushed excitedly.

"Thestral heartstring as core of yew wand. Its really surprising considering their volatility with each other." Ollivander said passionately.

Even Severus couldn't understand half the things Ollivander wanted to emphasize. Were yew and thestral heartstring volatile towards each other? It was the only thing which he could get from Ollivander's words.

"A wand perfect for fights. Use it well Mr Prince." Ollivander said after a moment of silence on his part. His voice became a little pensive while he spoke.

He turned the chair into a pig not before turning it back.

He gently handed the wand back to Severus.

"Mr Prince is Lord of an Italian House. They have no rules regarding the usage of a second wand Milicent." Ollivander said as he moved towards the last champion.

He gave a playful smile to Severus as he said that.

Severus took the wand as he kept the wand on his left hand's wand holder now. He didn't know what to make of the old wandmaker. The man had said a law in his behalf. Surely he wanted something from him.

Severus sat back on his chair as Ollivander went to the last champion. He remained in his seat as he listened about the wand of the Beauxbatons champion.

Apparently it was 11⅛ inches in length, made of beech and had heartstring of Ukrainian Ironbelly as a core.

It sounded much cooler in Severus' opinion. Ironbelly were afterall dragons of humongous size.

The event didn't last long once Ollivander finished his inspection.

The only thing which remained for now were the photos.

It was quite a pain to smile for photos. Smiling in front of other people for some reason was the hardest task for him. Nonetheless he managed himself throughout the whole event.

He sighed in relief after the whole event finished.

One thing was sure. Mingling with new people was not his forte!