concerneecogni how Harry might react if he opened the letters. Ben’s face dropped a little with disappointment. Jake was about to walk away having made up his mind, but he stopped as he saw his friend reach forward into the chest once more, only this time with real conviction.
“Hey! Look at this.” Ben stated, as he pulled out a beautifully ornate wooden box.
“What is it?” asked Jake. “Looks like a music box or something?”
Ben held it up towards the skylight for a better view. The box was made out of a wood they didn’t recognise and it was intricately carved with exquisite patterns all the way around. On its top was a crest, formed out of a different type of wood altogether, a shade darker than the one used to make the box itself. It was shaped like an eagle with outspread wings and it was embossed onto the box somehow so that it protruded ever so slightly.
“That’s weird,” stated Ben, as he examined it closely. “I can’t see any way of opening the thing. There’s no hinges or anything.”
“What? There must be.” replied Jake. “Here, let me have it.”
“Listen, I’m telling you it won’t open!” snapped Ben in frustration, as he tugged and pulled at the sides. “It feels hollow, but as if there’s something inside. Ahh, it just won’t open!” he shouted, before giving up and passing the box reluctantly to Jake.
Jake looked at it closely. Ben was right; there was no obvious way of opening it. He turned it around and around, searching for a catch or a lock of some description and as he did, his right palm passed over the crest.
‘Click!’
The sound was just loud enough for the boys to hear and they instinctively looked at one another.
‘Boom !!!’
An enormous roar shook the building and frightened them both. It was a deafening sound, as if an explosion had occurred nearby.
“Christ !!! What was that?” shrilled Ben. “It sounded like a bomb. Only it was in here.”
Jake’s eyes didn’t move from the box as he replied. “I- I don’t know, it…”
He stopped again in mid sentence, as he suddenly felt the box move slightly in his hands. “It’s opening. Look. It’s opening!” he cried out excitedly, shouting at Ben as if his best friend couldn’t see what was right in front of him.
The top of the box began to split into two and very slowly each top panel moved outwards. Both sides of the box began shifting, layer after layer, moving slightly outwards until the box had opened fully and each side resembled small inverted stairs. The back of the box had remained in tact, but it had extended the entire length of the new object so that it now resembled the shape of a small, opened sewing box.
“Holy sh… Hey, look at that!” shouted Jake, now staring directly into the open box.
Positioned neatly in each corner were four round, coloured gems, all of them roughly about the size of a large grape. Each stone was a different colour; the first was a bright red, the second dark green, the third a bright blue and the fourth a bright yellow. In the centre of the box was a larger , more ruggedly cut, white stone that had noiscernable shape and was far less pleasing to the eye. It seemed to just lie there in the centre of the box, without moving.
It didn’t move! The stone was touching nothing. But it didn’t move an inch when Jake shook the box. It was somehow suspended in mid air. The boys looked at each other in amazement, forgetting all about the thunderous bang that had scared them so badly, only seconds before.
Suddenly, all four corner stones began to glow brightly. Jake was unnerved by it and he shuffled backwards. He put the box down on the floor and stood up quickly. Ben instinctively stood up beside him. A small hum began resonating from the four corner stones, growing louder and louder until suddenly, each stone came to life and emitted a bright ray of coloured light which surged rapidly towards the centre stone. The four differently coloured beams of light hit it simultaneously and an even louder hum began, as the centre stone started to rise out of the box. It stopped ascending once it had reached its apex and a beam of bright white light suddenly appeared which raced up to the ceiling. The light hit the roof and then it bent, running along the ceiling to the