Chapter 18 – To the Wand Wood.
“Well, my dear” Gwen started, “first things first, do you have a wand?” ‘Cos only a few of us can control our magic without using a wand.”
“No.”
“Did your parents have wands, that’s always a good start.”
“No,” Replied Glynda in her normal monosyllabic way, “they didn’t have wands because they weren’t magical.”
“Well then it’s off to the wand tree for you, you need to get a wand to channel your power. But first, you need to think long and hard about the composition of your wand. Normally you may have up to three kinds of wood and three stones, Tom, show her yours.”
Tom produced his wand and handed it gingerly to Glynda. “Be careful with it, don’t try to use it or anything, it could be dangerous.”
“What’s your wand made of then?” Glynda asked.
The woods are Oak for strength, Elm for wisdom, and Willow for healing. The stones are Diamond for power, Ruby for fire and Emerald for water.”
“What does that mean?”
“Well, Oak is for strength and endurance powerful in war and battle, you can harness the power of the wood, Oak is a very strong and hard wood, used to build great structures, you can call upon it when you need strength, visualise it helping you. For example, if you are tired and flagging, you can use a staff to help you on your way, anyone can do that with any bit of wood. But with the magic of an oaken staff, you can draw down strength and endurance from the very trees around you, you could walk or even run for days if needed without getting tired.” Tom found himself repeating what the wand tree and Llewel had told him about nine months ago. “Elm is the tree of great wisdom, you can hold the wand’s crystal and meditate on any problem, and you may receive the answer as a thought on the wind, blown in from the great elm forests of Trymyll where the wise monks and mystics of the order live, contemplating life’s problems day and night, seeking wisdom from the forest itself. Willow is second only to wych-hazel for its healing powers. I sometimes wish I had asked for wych-hazel as I am more a healer than a fighter, but I was told that the tree knows best. The stone in the top, firstly the diamond, giver of light to fight against the darkness of evil and again, giving great power and strong magic when needed for defence or attack, diamond is the hardest material known to man and with it, you will be able to cut through most defensive shields. Ruby, the fire stone, allows you to control fire. You will be able to use fire for both attack and defence, Also, you’ll be able to draw down a little warmth on a cold winters evening to relieve the chill of the night. And finally, Emerald, the water stone, and giver of life itself. With the emerald, you can control water, stop it flowing, make it flow faster, conjure it out of the air even. My brother once was being chased by a fire breathing dragon, he imagined a tonne of water and dumped it into the dragon’s mouth, not only putting out the fire but also making it fall out of the sky because of the excess weight.” Tom said with a smirk.
“And?” his mother said.
“And what?” he replied.
“Haven’t you forgotten something?”
“No.” He said shooting a thought across to his mother at the same time. “The wand tree told me not to tell anyone about the yew.” “That’s all, nothing more.”
“Why don’t you and Flintock take Glynda to the wand tree?” Gwen suggested.
“Good idea,” Flintock replied, “we’ll leave after breakfast.”
“First we need to tell her all about the tree and what to ask for.” Tom blurted out.
“Now, now Tom, you know that’s not allowed,” Flintock said.
“Who said?” was Tom’s prompt reply.
“I don’t know who said it, but everybody knows the rules.”
“Yes, but who said, who actually said it, who made up the rules?”
“I don’t know,” Flintock said getting a little flustered, “it’s the way it’s always been.”
“Exactly, the rule doesn’t exist, it’s made up and it’s not true. Wizards come out with ridiculous wands because there was no one there to help them. Why? Because of a stupid made up and non-existent rule.”
“So, what are you saying?” Flintock asked.
“Simple. There is no rule. Nowhere in the annals, or the oral or written history of Trymyll has there ever been a rule to say you must not help or advise an acolyte when they visit the wand tree.”
“How do you know, what if you’re just making it up?”
“Simple, my dad researched it for years and has not been able to turn up the rule anywhere.”
“Is this true Llewellyn?” asked Flintock.
“Yes, I’m afraid it is, and when this present trouble is over, I will bring it before the council to have the urban myth squashed once and for all and to educate all acolytes on the attributes of the various woods and gems so they may choose more wisely. Here, I have prepared a paper on the makeup of wands, you can read it after Glynda.”
“I do not need to read your paper, I know exactly what wood and gems I need,” Glynda said.
“Which ones?” Tom asked.
“I will not tell anyone that until I have my wand, so no one tries to persuade me differently.”
“And another thing,” added Llewellyn, “It’s also a lie that you cannot return to the wand tree if you want a replacement or different wand. I am already on my third wand.”
This last statement left a look of bewilderment in the faces of Flintock and Faraji. It was almost as if he had spoken heresy.
“Right,” said Flintock to Tom and Glynda, “Off we go then.”
They apparated away and arrived at Wand Wood. To Tom, it looked exactly as he had seen it before. A dense wood of every type of tree he could name and every tree he couldn’t, all the same height. To Flintock, it was a forest of mighty oaks.
“What do you see?” Tom asked Glynda.
“Oh, it’s beautiful, a whole forest of cherry blossom trees, all in full bloom. But so close together, there's no way in that I can see.”
“Don’t worry,” Tom said reassuringly, “just walk up boldly and the path will appear. We will wait here.”
“Before you go,” Flintock said, “there’s one thing you need to know. The tree doesn’t answer questions,” he turned to Tom, “or is that just folk-law as well?”
“No, that bit is true. The wand tree told me that himself. So, if you want any information about what you are getting, you must word it in non-question sentences, because you need to find out as much as you can about the wand, but without asking questions. Does that make sense?”
“No, it doesn’t,” she replied, “but I’m sure I’ll manage.”
Glynda didn’t hesitate, she almost charged forward and was enveloped by the forest of trees. She walked on, the trees parted as she went forward and closed in again behind her. Eventually, she came to a clearing. At the centre of the clearing stood the wand tree, still a cherry tree, but old and ancient-looking. On the trunk, you could make out two eyes, a nose, and a mouth.