Chapter 102 - Chapter 102 Sword of Gryffindor.

-The Next Weekend ~ June 26th-"Still so secretive." Harry murmured to himself as he looked over the Sword of Gryffindor. The Dwarves certainly knew how to hide their secrets in the metal they forged, that was for certain. He'd been looking over the legendary sword for almost a full month now and had only just gleaned a bit of knowledge from examining it. He knew the rubies he'd thought were 'decorative' were actually linked to the sword's power. Perhaps the 'True' power that Drad Erdunn had briefly hinted at. The metal was most assuredly an alloy of Magical Steel and what appeared to be Adamantite. Though Harry suspected that another Magical Metal had been forged into the alloy as well, he couldn't identify it."But what I'm really looking for is how your Magical Ability works." Harry spoke to the sword. "How do you 'take in' things that make you stronger? What constitutes as 'stronger' anyway? Is it just any ability or function you don't already possess?" The sword, of course, didn't answer him but Harry picked it up and briefly ran his mana through the Artifact Sword. By feeling out the weapon's reaction to his mana he should, hopefully, be able to glean a bit of information about its Magical Properties. This was a 'Skill' that he was still learning and fine-tuning, but it was essential to become a good Artificer.Feeling with his mana as it flowed into the sword Harry sank into the equivalent of an Occlumency trance. He slowly felt through the sword, touching its own innate Magic and feeling how it responded. The sword was 'closed off' for lack of a better term. His mana could be focused to the edge of the blade to increase sharpness; the blade itself was also greatly resistant to damage of both physical and magical nature. Continuing his 'feeling' of the sword's Magic, Harry did find something new this time. The blade seemed to have a small 'vortex' of mana near the guard. So miniscule that even after several of these sessions he'd never noticed it. Letting his mana touch the 'vortex' Harry felt his mana be drawn into the depths of the sword. Before he could try to follow this small bit of his mana it was 'spat out' for all it amounted to and the vortex seemed to disappear."Well now, isn't that interesting." Harry grinned as he set the sword down on the work table in the smithy. He exited the smithy into the main room of his hidden workshop and pulled down the most advanced book on Runecraft he currently had. If he was right this book might be able to tell him what the 'vortex' of the Sword of Gryffindor was. Flipping through the pages Harry stopped near the back and looked at what he believed to be the most likely candidate for the sword's Magical Ability; or at least what made up the basis of it. "The 'Consume' Array." He smiled at the complex description of the Array. That was all this book had on the Array, a very complex description of what it did. There were no examples or even any concrete Runic Sequences that went into making said Array. Just an overview of what it did and how it functioned in relation to Branches of Magic like, Warding, Enchanting, and Ritual Magic."Looks like it'll be a good long while before I'm able to put something like this together." Harry mused as he read over the entry on the 'Consume' Array. "I might end up hurting myself or others if I messed up with this one."-June 30th ~ Leaving Feast-Harry, Penny, Luna, and Padma clapped politely for Hufflepuff, this year's winner of the House Cup. The House of Yellow and Black were cheering at having won the Cup for the first time in nine years. Admittedly this might have been due to the tensions that arose this year between Gryffindor and Slytherin over the Chamber of Secrets. Many a fight had broken out between the two Houses when accusations had been thrown about between them.The ride on the Express was fun. Luna sat with Harry and Penny for the ride and happily watched as the two performed Wandless Magic. The Trio separated at King's Cross Station and Harry and Penny were met by Sirius, Tonks, and Penny's father Edward."Good to see you, Harry!" Sirius smiled brightly as he pulled his Godson into a hug. "Penny keeping you out of trouble?" He teased."Unlike 'some' people, I don't get in trouble at school." Harry retorted and Sirius chuckled while ruffling his hair."Wotcher, Harrikins!" Tonks practically smothered him with her hug."Tonks, Harry and I wanted you to guess how much Harry has developed his Mana Levels this year." Penny told the Metamorph after hugging her father tightly. "Harry has been busy this year.""Hmm, is that so Harry?" Tonks put her face very close to Harry's with a teasing grin. "Well I know you haven't eclipsed me yet. Not to brag, much, but I got a reading of 6,422 this morning.""Well then, how about you guess?" Harry grinned challengingly. "A free Stinging Hex to me if you're within one hundred points of my level. If you're not, I get a free Stinging Hex on you.""Oh, someone's confident are they?" Tonks grinned back at him. "I accept your bet!" Penny and Harry both forced themselves not to smirk at Tonks walking right into their prank. It was a bet the Metamorph wouldn't be able to win! She'd never expect the boost Harry had gotten from the Basilisk and the Rite of Conquest."Whenever you're ready?" Harry grinned, knowing it would rile Tonks up a little."You were only around two thousand the last time you told me." Tonks began as she looked contemplative. "Harrikins usually splits his time between Wandless Magic and Enchanting, unlike me who's always getting stronger." She teased with a wink. "So if it's been almost half a year, a little less, then I'm going to ballpark you around an even three thousand since you're so confident!"